KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The No. 10 West Chester University baseball team continued its spring break trip in Kissimmee, Florida on Sunday, as the Golden Rams squared off against Great Lake Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) representative Grand Valley State in a doubleheader at the Osceola Heritage Park Field.
WCU (5-1) used a huge five run sixth to cap off 7-5 come-from behind victory to start the afternoon, before the Golden Rams suffered a 7-0 defeat against the Lakers in Sunday's nightcap to mark the first loss for West Chester this season.
GAME ONE: West Chester – 7 | Grand Valley State – 5
- The Golden Rams raced out to a 2-0 advantage on Sunday after outfielder Michael Krusinski (MEDFORD, NJ/BISHOP EUSTACE PREP) notched a RBI single to center before getting brought home thanks to a wild pitch by GVSU starter Michael Morelli.
- The Lakers knotted the game at 2-2 in the top of the third frame, and GVSU went on to take its first lead of the afternoon (3-2) after No. 2 hitter Chase Carpenter crossed the plate on an error.
- Down one run in the sixth, the heart of West Chester order used some two-out magic to completely change the outlook of game one. With Joey Coyle (WILMINGTON, DEL./SALESIANUM) sitting at second following a double, Justin Horn (WILLOW GROVE, PA./UPPER DUBLIN) got to first on the error to put two on, and then Joe Zirolli (KENNETT, PA./KENNETT SQUARE) went on to square the game with a RBI single off a 2-0 count.
- With the score even at 3-3, Jared Melone (NORTH WALES, PA./NORTH PENN) stepped to the dish and sent a double to left to score Horn, which forced the Lakers into a pitching change.
- With two outs on the board and a new pitcher on the mound, Luke Cantwell (BROOMALL, PA./ MARPLE NEWTOWN) tallied a 2-RBI single out to left to stretch the Golden Rams' lead to 6-3, before Zach Wright (BURLINGTON COUNTRY, NJ/NORTHERN BURLINGTON COUNTY REGIONAL) capped of the five-run sixth with a RBI single.
- The Lakers plated two in the seventh to trim the deficit to 7-5, but that would be as close as GVSU would get as reliever Andrew Scarpelli (LEWISBERRY, PA/TRINITY) notched two strikeouts in the stanza to shut down on the Lakers in game one.
Krusinski led all players with two hits in game one, while Cantwell topped the squad with two RBI to kick off the afternoon. On the mound,
David Mervis (GATHERSBURG, MD/GONZAGA) (0-0) got the start and held the Lakers hitless in 2.0 innings before being replaced by
Nick Picariello (PHILADELPHIA, PA./GERMANTOWN ACADEMY), who surrendered one run on three hits. Making his second appearance of the season, Scarpelli (1-0) got the win on Sunday after giving up two runs (both earned) on three hits with three K's in 2.2 innings of relief.
GAME TWO: West Chester – 0 | Grand Valley State – 7
- The Golden Rams' first hit of game two came off the bat of Coyle in the second to give Coyle his team-leading third 2B of the season.
- Jon Hansen (CHERRY HILL, N.J./GEORGE MASON) notched a single in the fourth, before Corey Webb (EASTON, PA./EASTON) connected on his first single of the afternoon with two outs in the fifth frame. Horn and Webb both logged hits in seventh frame to wrap up the night for the Golden Rams.
- Overall, the Golden Rams recorded five total hits in game two, and were kept off the board thanks to a nine-strikeout complete game victory by GVSU's Cade Cintorino.
Webb paced the squad with two hits in game two, while Coyle, Hansen and Horn were responsible for the other three hits on Sunday night. Pitcher
Zach Rice (HONEY BROOK, PA. TWIN VALLEY) (1-1) suffered his first loss of the season after giving up four runs (three earned) on five hits with four walks against just one strikeout in 5.1 innings.
UP NEXT
The Golden Rams continue their Florida swing tomorrow (March 11) with a single game against University of Minnesota Duluth scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m. from the Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee.
