BLOOMSBURG – Visiting West Chester came away with a doubleheader sweep over the Bloomsburg University baseball team at cold and windswept Danny Litwhiler Field on Monday afternoon.
The Huskies are now 6-6 overall on the year and 5-3 in PSAC East play while West Chester is now 10-7 and 8-4 in conference action.
GAME ONE – West Chester 4, Bloomsburg 3 | Box Score (HTML)
The Huskies led early, but late runs from the Golden Rams sent West Chester to a game one victory.
It was a pitchers' duel early on with the Huskies finally cracking into the scoring column in the third. Brian Almand (Haddon Township, NJ/Paul VI) worked a walk to lead off and moved to third following a double to right center off the bat of Brady West (Harleysville/North Penn). A double play erased the lead runner following a liner back to the mound, but Eric Frain (Philadelphia/Archbishop Ryan) knocked in West from second by lining a double to right for the 1-0 lead.
Bloomsburg added two runs in the fifth when back-to-back singles from Shane Woelfel (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) and Frain set the table, allowing a dropped fly ball in right field by the West Chester defense to stretch the Huskies advantage to 3-0.
Huskies starter Ryuta Amaike (Whitehall/Whitehall) was terrific early on, not allowing a base runner until a full-count walk to Justin Roman to lead off the fifth. Amaike took a no-hitter to the sixth, but that was when West Chester came alive.
A Huskies error allowed the West Chester leadoff man to reach and Bill Ford then took a 2-1 pitch out to right center field for a game-changing home run, cutting the score to 3-2. Three straight singles then led the Huskies to go to the bullpen and then Roman later gave the Golden Rams the lead with a two-RBI single through the left side for a 4-3 lead.
A walk to Ryan Kirman (Little Silver, N.J./Red Bank Regional) and a single from Almand put the tying run in scoring position with one out in the Huskies sixth, but no runs came across. Bloomsburg again threatened to tie in the seventh, once more putting runners at first and second when Austin Edgette (Exton/Downingtown East) was hit by a pitch and Tim Ravel (Sinking Spring/Wilson) singled through the left side with one out. Damin Muth (Breinigsville/Parkland) was then intentionally walked to load the bases, but Golden Rams starter Andrew Gernert coaxed a ground ball fielder's choice to end the game.
Amaike (0-1) was tagged with the tough-luck loss after working 5.1 innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits. The redshirt sophomore walked only one and struck out six. Cody Heane (McClure/Indian Valley) tossed 1.2 innings and did not allow a run with two strikeouts in relief.
Gernert (2-1) threw a complete game, allowing just one earned run on nine hits with seven strikeouts for West Chester.
Frain, Ravel and Brady West (Harleysville/North Penn) all had two hits each for Bloomsburg.
GAME TWO – West Chester 22, Bloomsburg 3 | Box Score (HTML)
An 11-run third inning blew the nightcap open as the Golden Rams repeatedly used the swirling winds to their advantage, hitting four home runs in the game.
West Chester scored three times in the first for the early lead, but Bloomsburg got a run back in the bottom of the inning following an RBI single from Muth with two outs.
The Golden Rams exploded in the third, however. West Chester sent 15 batters to the plate in the inning with Roman and Robert Knox blasting two-and-three-run home runs respectively.
From there it was all West Chester. Matt Petrizzi did it all, pitching a complete game six-hitter and allowing two earned runs with two walks and eight strikeouts. At the plate, he went 4-for-5 with five runs scored and two RBI.
Frain and Muth both had two hits for the Huskies.
Tuesday's scheduled doubleheader at Lock Haven has been postponed to Wednesday. The previously scheduled home doubleheader with LeMoyne has been postponed with no makeup date announced.
