For immediate release – 4/17/2014 - #327
Big Second Inning not enough as Hornets Fall 8-6 to Quakers
LYNCHBURG, VA – The Lynchburg College baseball team took an early lead on Guilford College but ultimately fell 8-6 in 11 innings of Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) action Thursday afternoon.
Guilford jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the second inning as Corey Wallace singled, advancing to second on a fielding error. Michael Whited singled to right-center field to plate Wallace for the first run of the game.
Zac Patrick got two quick outs on a sacrifice bunt and pop up to second, but the Quakers put together a string of three straight singles to increase their lead to 2-0 and load the bases for John Macon Smith. The leading hitter in the Quaker lineup grounded a ball to the right side, but another error allowed two more runs to score as the Guilford runners were running on Patrick's pitch.
Lynchburg erased the 4-0 deficit in the bottom of the frame by doing damage with two outs.
With Wil Parsons on second base and two Hornets retired by Lou Trosch, Pat Harris singled to center for Lynchburg's first run. A fielding error moved Harris to second where he would score on another single, this one from Lincoln Evans.
Lynchburg trailed 4-2 when a pair of swings changed the course of the game.
Joe Rogers put the barrel on Trosch's pitch, sending it deep over the left-center field wall to score Jay Kenyon and Evans for the 5-4 Hornet advantage. Rob Tomasulo followed with a no-doubt blast 10 feet inside the right-field foul pole to make the score 6-4.
Guilford cut into the Hornet lead in the fourth, starting with three straight singles to load the bases. Patrick induced a sacrifice fly off the bat of Nathan Fulbright before getting back-to-back ground balls on the infield to escape the jam.
The Hornets picked up a quick out in the top of the 11th frame before a walk, a pair of wild pitches and another walk put runners on the corners. Wallace laced a line drive through the third base hole to give Guilford its first lead since the second inning. Whited added another run when he grounded into a fielder's choice.
Tomasulo went 3-for-5 for the Hornets while Rogers drove in three, all coming on his homer. Patrick allowed six runs, three earned, over eight innings of work on the mound.
Trosch made it four innings for Guilford (19-18/9-9), allowing six runs but only one was earned. Borja Jones-Berasaluce (3-3) pitched up the win as he allowed one hit in two innings of work.
Lynchburg (20-10/8-9) hosts Southern Virginia University (5-21) for a single, non-conference game Friday at 3 p.m. The two teams were originally scheduled for a doubleheader at 2 p.m.