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BLOOMSBURG – Dominating pitching performances from Huskies starters Casey Cooperman (Allentown/Parkland) and Tyler Hill (Lehighton/Lehighton) powered the Bloomsburg University baseball team to a doubleheader sweep of visiting West Chester by scores of 10-2 and 5-1 on Thursday afternoon at a cold Danny Litwhiler Field.

The wins move the Huskies to 12-8 overall on the season and 5-1 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division play while West Chester, which was ranked No. 8 in this week's National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Atlantic Region poll, falls to 10-6 and 3-3.
 
GAME ONE – Huskies 10, West Chester 2
Early offense set the tone for Bloomsburg in the opener. Eric Frain (Philadelphia/Archbishop Ryan) singled to lead off the home half of the first and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Nick Mazza (Carbondale/Carbondale). A fly out advanced Frain to third before Joey Casselberry (Eagleville/Methacton) worked a walk. With runners at the corners, Casselberry appeared to be caught in a potential rundown, but the West Chester second baseman dropped a throw from the Golden Rams catcher, allowing Frain to score from third with the first run of the game.

Bloomsburg struck for three runs in the second. Brad Smith (Morgantown/Twin Valley), the reigning PSAC East and NCBWA Atlantic Regional Hitter of the Week, started the inning with a double to right and later scored on a single through the left side off the bat of Tim Ravel (Sinking Spring/Wilson). A run-scoring double from Frain would eventually bring Ravel home and Frain scored on an RBI single to left by Mazza for the four-run lead.

That offense would turn out to be more than enough for Cooperman who was outstanding again. The senior right-hander threw his third complete game of the year and 10th of his career by limiting the Golden Rams to one earned run – a sixth inning home run by Justin Roman. Cooperman (3-2) needed only 79 pitches to complete the game, 58 of which were strikes, as he struck out seven and walked just one.

The Huskies added plenty of insurance – Mazza doubled in a run and Damin Muth (Breinigsville/Parkland) added an RBI single through the left side in the fourth and four more runs crossed the plate in the home fifth on a run-scoring hit from Muth while Mazza brought in another run on an RBI ground out and Brady West (Harleysville/North Penn) tallied an RBI on a fielder's choice.

Frain ignited the offense by going 3-for-3 with four runs scored and an RBI out of the leadoff spot while Mazza added a season-high three RBIs on two hits out of the two-hole in the lineup. Muth also was 3-for-4 with two RBIs while Smith registered a pair of hits as well.

Matt McAllister (1-2) was charged with the loss for WCU, allowing three earned runs in two innings, leaving after being struck with a line drive off his foot to end the second inning.
 
GAME TWO – Huskies 5, West Chester 1
Bloomsburg led early and never looked back in the nightcap behind another stellar outing from Hill.

Like in the first game, Frain opened the home half of the first by driving a single up the middle. A ground out moved him to second and he would go to third on a single to right by Casselberry. Muth brought in the first run with his run-scoring groundout.

The Huskies opened the flood gates with a four-run third, doing all of their damage with two outs. Mazza was hit by a pitch after the first two batters of the inning were retired and he scored one batter later when Casselberry drove a ball to the fence in left center. Muth followed with a hit back through the box to score Casselberry and two more runs would later score on a Golden Rams error.

By then Hill was cruising. West Chester struck for a run in the fourth on an RBI single to right center by Robert Knox, but that would be all the offense for the visitors. The Golden Rams threatened in their final at-bat, loading the bases and bringing the tying run to the plate with one out. Hill had enough left in the tank to record a strikeout and then coaxed Roman, who had homered in game one, to ground into a force play at second base for the final out of the game.

Hill (4-1) did not allow an earned run, scattering six hits while striking out a career-best eight batters for his first career complete game. Fred Breidenbach (1-3) was tagged with the loss, working six innings while allowing five hits and three earned runs.

Cooperman's season ERA now stands at 2.05 while Hill's is at a miniscule 1.62.

The two teams will finish their four-game series with a scheduled doubleheader at West Chester on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.