JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Coming off a 10-run victory over top-seeded Gannon yesterday, the West Chester University baseball team returned to Point Stadium on Saturday to square off against Bloomsburg University in the semifinals of the 2019 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Baseball Championship. The Huskies hit first with six runs in the first and never looked backed, as BU downed the Golden Rams 14-3 in seven innings.
Saturday's loss, the first for the Golden Rams in their last nine contests, drops West Chester to 31-14 overall and sends WCU into the loser's bracket where they will face the winner between Cal U-Seton Hill at 3:30 p.m. today. The loser of that game being will be eliminated while the winner will face Bloomsburg (34-14) tonight at 6:30 p.m. in the championship game of the tournament. If the representative from the other side of the bracket were to defeat BU tonight, the two teams would play a winner-take-all game tomorrow for the title, with that game's starting time still being determined due to weather concerns in Johnstown.
Bloomsburg tagged West Chester starter
David Mervis (GATHERSBURG, MD/GONZAGA) for six runs in the first innings to take a commanding 6-0 advantage into the second. In the top of the second, West Chester recorded three singles in a row, as
JR Gifford (DOYLESTOWN, PA./ARCHBISHOP WOOD),
Jon Hansen (CHERRY HILL, N.J./GEORGE MASON), and
Zach Wright (BURLINGTON COUNTRY, NJ/NORTHERN BURLINGTON COUNTY REGIONAL) each notched a hit to load the bases with one out. Following Wright's single, Gifford would come home thanks to a throwing error by BU's right fielder to put WCU on the board.
Down five,
Michael Krusinski (MEDFORD, NJ BISHOP EUSTACE PREP) singled in
Joe Zirolli (KENNETT, PA. KENNETT SQUARE) in the third to cut the WCU deficit to 6-2, before Bloomsburg would answer with an additional four runs over the next two frames to stretch its advantage to 10-2.
After Wright singled in Krusinski in the sixth, the game would end after a three-run seventh gave Bloomsburg the 14-3 victory in seven frames.
Krusinski and Wright both logged two hits and one RBI in the loss, with Krusinski adding a double along the way.
Jared Melone (NORTH WALES, PA./NORTH PENN) was hitless on Saturday for just the sixth time all season and the zero in the hits column against the Huskies snapped a six-hit streak that the senior was on throughout the tournament.
Mervis (5-1) got saddled with his first loss of the season after giving up nine runs (all earned) on four hits with five walks and six strikeouts in 4.1 innings.
For Bloomsburg, JJ Spehrley (6-2) came out victories after tying a career high with eight K's in 6.0 innings of work. Offensively, Cole Swiger tallied seven RBI on just two hits to lead the Huskies to victory.
