March 12, 2013

Box Score

MERION STATION, Pa. - Facing a 10-4 deficit entering the bottom of the fourth inning, the Saint Joseph's baseball team engineered an explosive comeback, batting around in both the fifth and sixth innings and scoring 11 unanswered runs en route to a 15-10 win over Villanova at Smithson Field on Tuesday afternoon. The Hawks have now won four straight.

Eight different Hawks scored runs on the day while SJU pounded out 13 hits and took advantage of two hit batsmen and five walks issued by Wildcat pitchers.

Villanova (3-10) dominated the early part of the game, the start of which was pushed back 20 minutes as a lengthy period of rain came to a close just before first pitch. The Wildcats scored a run in the top of the first after a throwing error on a potential double play ball allowed Eric Lowe to plate an unearned run.

VU added two more in the second on a double by Kevin Jewitt and a single by Paul Rambaud.

Saint Joseph's (6-10) knotted the affair in the bottom of the second, as a pair of walks to Greg Kumpel and Chris Hueth put two on with nobody out. After a fly ball by John Brue moved Kumpel to third, an RBI groundout by Anthony Cirillo got the Hawks on the board.

Quinn Renner followed with a home run into the bullpens in right field for his 100th career hit and his second longball of the season to tie the score at 3-3.

Villanova answered in the third, restoring the lead with four runs on four hits. SJU got one of those runs back in the bottom half as Mike Muha stroked his second home run of the season over the fence in left field to make it a 7-4 game.

The Wildcats then doubled their margin in the top of the fourth, going on top 10-4 as storm clouds returned and the skies opened up once again.

However, as the rain stopped and the sun broke through, so too did the Hawk bats. Muha led off the bottom of the fifth with a single before Brian O'Keefe followed with a single of his own. Kumpel then ripped a double to left center to score Muha and leave runners on second and third. An RBI groundout by Hueth cut the deficit to four and chased Villanova starter Kevin MacLachlan from the game.

With Kumpel on third, Brue ripped a triple to right center to score another run and make it a 10-7 game. Cirillo then laid down a surprise bunt single to score Brue before Renner legged out a single of his own to leave two on and one out. Two batters later, after a double steal, Stefan Kancylarz laced a single up the middle to bring the Hawks all the way back and tie the score at 10-10.

The Crimson and Gray wasted no time going ahead, batting around again and plating five more in the sixth. O'Keefe led off with a single before Kumpel was hit by a pitch and Hueth drew a four-pitch walk to load the bases for Brue. The freshman came through again, doubling to left center to score two runs and put the Hawks on top, 12-10. Cirillo was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Renner, who hit a grounder to second; however, the throw was wide of home plate and allowed Hueth to score and push the lead to three.

Kevin Kratochwill then drove in the final runs of the game with a single to left center, scoring Brue and Cirillo, before the Wildcats managed to escape the inning.

Despite the offensive display of the first six innings, the final third of the game was dominated by pitching. Sophomore James Harrity tossed three innings of scoreless, one-hit relief to earn the win and improve to 1-0. Villanova's Chris Haggarty also pitched well in relief, stopping the bleeding for the Wildcats and matching Harrity's three-inning, one-hit, four-strikeout performance.

The Hawks will continue their seven-game homestand on Friday, March 15, when they host the Marist Red Foxes at Smithson Field. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. Live stats and streaming audio will be available at SJUHawks.com.