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Bowling Green State University
NOTRE DAME
Falcon Baseball Team Loses 11-6 Decision At Notre Dame
April 29, 2009 | Baseball
April 29, 2009
Notre Dame, Ind. - The Bowling Green State University baseball team was held to less than 10 hits for the first time in the last 10 games by three Notre Dame pitchers and a seven-run fourth inning for the Fighting Irish was the difference in their 11-6 victory over Bowling Green Wednesday night at Eck Stadium.
Bowling Green jumped on Irish starter Steve Sabatino for three runs in the opening inning as the left-hander hit the first two Falcon batters before a Tyler Elkins infield single loaded the bases with no outs. Junior third baseman Derek Spencer then stroked a single to left field that drove home two runs with the third run scoring on a fielder's choice later in the inning.
Elkins extended his hitting streak to 11 games with his infield single while Spencer continued his torrid pace at the plate collecting his 16th hit in his last 23 at-bats to drive in his 12th and 13th runs over the last six games. Elkins has now hit safely in 30 of the last 33 games he has played this season.
Notre Dame got one of those runs back in the bottom half of the inning as catcher Matt Scioscia doubled home designated hitter Ryan Connolly who had walked with one out. Notre Dame added a run in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by shortstop Jeremy Barnes that drove home Connolly, who walked and advanced to second when BG could not complete a pick off play.
The Fighting Irish then turned the tide in their favor in the fourth scoring seven runs on six hits knocking out BG starter Kyle Atkinson as the first eight batters reached. A walk, a single and another walk loaded the base with no outs. Center fielder A.J. Pollock singled to center to drive in one run. Freshman Ross Gerdeman entered the game for the BG and hit the first batter he faced to force in a run before Scioscia stroked a two-run double to left field. Notre Dame added runs on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single by first baseman Casey Martin later in the frame. The big inning gave the Fighting Irish a 9-3 lead.
The Falcons cut the deficit in half in the fifth as left fielder Jon Berti led off by drawing a walk. He moved to second on a ground out and after a pop out, center fielder T.J. Blanton stroked an RBI single to left field. After successive walks loaded the bases, Elkins drove home two runs with a single to left field, but he was tagged out after rounding first base too far and getting caught in a run down.
Notre Dame moved its lead back out to five runs, 11-6, in the seventh inning as the first three batters singled against freshman Steven Barrett before freshman lefty Kacy Dwornik was brought in. Dwornik threw a wild pitch to allow one Irish run to score with the other scoring on a ground out to round out the scoring.
Elkins was 3-for-5 with two RBI to lead BG offensively while Blanton was the only other player with more than one hit going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Spencer had two RBI for the Falcons. Atkinson suffered the loss going three innings allowing six hits and six earned runs striking out two and walking four, all of whom came around to score. BG used five pitchers in the game.
Sabatino earned his second win in as many decisions going five innings allowing four hits and three earned runs, Right-hander Todd Miller pitched the final 3.1 innings to pick up his second save of the season. Scioscia, the son of Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim manager Mike Scioscia, led the Notre Dame attack with a pair of hits and a career-high four RBI while shortstop Jeremy Barnes had three hits and a pair of RBI.
Notre Dame has won three of its last four and improved to 26-17 while Bowling Green, now 10-11 in non-league games this season, lost for only the fourth time in their last 11 games and is now 20-18.
The Falcons host Ohio University this weekend in important Mid-American Conference East Division games. The three-game series gets underway Friday with a 3 p.m. contest.
