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March 27, 2010 VCU POSTS PAIR OF WALK-OFF WINS IN DOUBLEHEADER AGAINST NORTHEASTERN GAME #1: VCU 6, Northeastern 5 With the score tied at 5-5, senior M.L. Morgan (Petersburg, Va.) led off the bottom of the ninth with a single to left center, his third hit of the ballgame. Senior Richie Gonzalez (Caguas, Puerto Rico) followed with a sacrifice bunt attempt. Northeastern pitcher Charly Bashara went to second with his throw, but the ball carried into left field and put runners on second and third. The Huskies intentionally walked junior Doug Otto (Jefferson City, Mo.) to load the bases with nobody out and set the stage for Van Meter. With the infield and outfield drawn in, Van Meter lifted a 2-2 pitch over the head of Northeastern first baseman Matt Miller to score Morgan and hand the Rams their first conference victory of the season. Junior Jonathan Watson (Richmond,Va.) threw three innings of scoreless relief to earn his first victory of the season. Watson (1-0) allowed three hits and a walk while striking out one. Bashara (1-1) took the loss for the Huskies. VCU (12-10, 2-0) trailed, 4-0, before the Rams were able to muster some offense against NU starting pitcher Les Williams. In the bottom of the fifth, pinch hitter Taylor Perkins (Dinwiddie, Va.) singled through the right side to score junior John Lenherr (Windom, Kan.). Two batters later, with runners on second and third, Gonzalez punched a two-out, two-run double over the head of Northeastern right fielder Tony DiCesare to pull the Rams within 4-3. Otto followed with an RBI single to knot the score at 4-4. Northeastern (6-7, 0-2) retook the lead in the top of the sixth on a Ryan Maguire RBI single, but VCU was quick to answer. Van Meter, who was 2-of-5 in the game, led off the sixth with a single, stole second, and came around to score on a single to left by Lenherr. Lenherr was 3-of-4 with an RBI in game one. GAME #2: VCU 5, Northeastern 4 Trailing 4-2 with one out in the bottom of the ninth, Perkins sent a single into right field to start the VCU rally. Morgan laid down a bunt and was able to reach first base after a collision with Northeastern pitcher Andrew Leenhouts allowed the ball to get away. Both runners moved into scoring position on a passed ball before Perkins scored on a wild pitch. However, in an attempt to throw out Perkins at the plate, Huskies catcher Jon Leroux’s toss sailed past Leenhouts and Morgan came home to tie the score at 4-4. Gonzalez drew a walk and advanced to second on a single by Otto before Van Meter came up with his second game-winning hit of the day with a single up the middle. Sophomore Seth Cutler-Voltz, who went the distance for VCU, allowed four runs (two earned) on seven hits with eight strikeouts and no walks, and improved to 3-2 on the year. Leenhouts suffered his first loss of the season after allowing five runs on seven hits in 8.1 innings of work. Otto collected three hits in game two, while Morgan, who went a combined 5-for-9 at the plate on Saturday, and Van Meter, registered two hits apiece for the Rams. Northeastern wasted little time getting on the board to start the second game. Miller reached on a fielding error at first base to lead off the inning and later came home on an RBI double by Frank Compagnone. Brendan Stokes followed with a two-out single into left field, which scored Compagnone, and the Huskies took a 2-0 lead. VCU threatened in the bottom of the frame as the Rams loaded the bases with no out. However, Leenhouts settled down, retired the side and stranded all three Black & Gold runners. Northeastern built a 4-1 lead before VCU pulled within two after a Brent Mikionis (Powhatan, Va.) sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth. VCU will conclude its three-game series against Northeastern on Sunday at 11 a.m. at The Diamond. |
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