Union, N.J. (3/22/17) – Sophomore Tyler Hopman tossed a complete game using both his weapons as the Kean University baseball team edged Stevens Institute of Technology, 4-3 on Wednesday afternoon.
The win gives Kean two over the Ducks this year as the Cougars (10-7) walked away with a season opening 5-3 win earlier in February.
Hopman (2-1) allowed seven hits and three runs with eight strikeouts and two walks. He tossed the first six innings righty and finished the contest with his left. Hopman retired the first 12 batters his faced before giving up a leadoff single to Zeph Walters on a 3-2 pitch to start the fifth.
Kean was first to scratch across a run in the fifth as Brian Cole delivered with a two out, RBI double scoring Austin Arndt who reached on a walk.
The Ducks (5-9-1) quickly took the lead with a three spot in the sixth. Scott Bartnick provided an RBI double to tie the game and Patrick Rood gave Stevens the lead with a two out, two RBI single.
In the see-saw game, Kean tied things up in the same frame as Brock Podgurski reached on a four pitch walk and eventually scored on a Ducks' error. Cole collected another RBI with a bases loaded walk to knot the game at three-all.
The Cougars plated the go-ahead and winning run in the seventh as Jim Fitzgerald blooped a ball down the leftfield line with two outs.
Matt Krupa was 3-for-5, scoring the winning run, while Cole was 2-for-4 with two RBI. Fitzgerald finished the day with a 2-for-3 performance with an RBI and run scored.
For the Ducks, Walters was 2-for-3. Relief pitcher Ryan Larsen (0-2) suffered the loss after tossing two and two thirds innings.