TicketsNinth Inning Rally Sinks Bearcats
Contact: Shawn Sell
2/21/2003
Drew Saylor hit his second home run against Vanderbilt |
NASHVILLE, Tenn.---Vanderbilt scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to steal a 5-4 win from Cincinnati and drop the Bearcats to 2-6 on the season in the series opener on Friday in the Commodores? Hawkins Field.
The defeat ruined an outstanding pitching effort from Bearcat starter B.J. Borsa. Borsa covered 8.1 innings on the hill, yielding only two earned runs and five hits, while walking two and striking out six. The Commodores up their record to 3-1 with the win.
The contest had all the makings of a classic pitchers dual as Borsa and Vanderbilt?s Jeremy Sowers matched each other pitch for pitch. Sowers, a former first round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds, pitched into the eighth inning, but like Borsa didn?t factor into the decision.
The only serious trouble Borsa got in came in the fourth inning when the Commodores plated a pair of runs. Cesar Nicolas and John Kaye singled, before Tony Mansolino drew a walk to load the bases. One out later, Warner Jones lined an RBI single down the left field line that plated one run and Jonathan Douillard followed with a sacrifice fly for the games? second marker.
After the two-run Vandy frame, Borsa settled down to retire nine in a row, throwing only 21 pitches during the three-inning stretch. The Cincinnati offense came to life to support Borsa in the seventh and eighth innings with all four of its runs. Drew Saylor started it off in the seventh when he cracked his second home run of the season over the high leftfield wall. The Bearcats got two more in the eighth on a Mark Muscenti run-scoring hit and Jon DeLuca?s RBI double.
In the bottom of the ninth, Borsa retired the lead off hitter, but walked Worth Scott to bring Nate Bouldin out of the Cincinnati bullpen. Bouldin started off by yielding a double to Jones that scored Scott to cut the Bearcat edge to 4-3. Pinch hitter Ryan Godfrey worked Bouldin for a walk and Rucker Taylor lined a single that tied the game. After Bouldin intentionally walked Ryan Klosterman to load the bases, Matt Zeller dribbled an infield single that allowed the game?s winning run to score.
?It was another tight game for us, but more frustrating this time, because it seemed like we found a way to let the win slip away,? said Bearcat head coach Brian Cleary. ?We did a good job against an excellent pitcher (Sowers) and put ourselves in a position to win the game. I think it would be difficult for B.J. to pitch much better than he did. Anytime you are in a one-run game, a lot can shape the outcome.?
Bouldin took the loss for the Bearcats, his first of the season against two wins. Jeff Sues (1-0) was the winner for Vandy, after allowing just one hit in 1.2 innings of work. Saylor and Muscenti both had two hits for the Bearcats, while Nicolas and Jones were multi-hit performers for the Commodores.
The two teams are scheduled to contest game two of the series tomorrow, beginning at 2 p.m. CST. Kyle Markle will get the ball for the Bearcats, facing Vanderbilt?s Robert Ransom.
Notes
? With six strikeouts, B.J. Borsa took over third place on UC?s career strikeouts list with 217. He passed Dave Sala who fanned 215 from 1984-86.
? The Bearcats? eight hits were a season-high.