TicketsBearcats Bomb Xavier, 21-8
Contact: Shawn Sell
4/29/2003
Steve Pickerell hit three home runs and drove in eight in Cincinnati's win over Xavier. |
CINCINNATI, Ohio---The offensive fireworks started early, but the Cincinnati pitching took over from there, as the Bearcats survived a slugfest with Xavier 21-8 on Tuesday afternoon at Hayden Field.
Steve Pickerell and Brad Dorrmann led the offense for Cincinnati, combining for 13 RBI. Pickerell tied a pair of school records ripping three home runs on the day and driving in eight runs, while Dorrmann added a grand slam in the ninth inning. Brad Hunt was the pitching star as he came on in place of Nate Bouldin in the fifth inning, tossing 4.2 shutout innings to earn the first save of his collegiate career. Bouldin picked up the victory to improve to 5-5 on the season.
?I thought we did a good job of come out swinging the bats and getting a couple of big hits,? said Bearcat head coach Brian Cleary. ?We have sorely been lacking power in our line up and I think Pickerell is the man to provide it. But I think the key to today?s game was Brad Hunt?s pitching performance. He came in and got out of a jam right away and I think that set the tone.?
Cincinnati started early getting an RBI single by Aaron Moll to plate the first run. The Bearcats batted around in the second, getting six runs to open up a 7-0 lead. Erik Eitel started the inning off with his first homer of the year. Drew Saylor tacked on two more with a two-out, two-run single, setting up Pickerell for his first long ball of the day, a three-run blast.
Xavier stormed back with three in the bottom of the inning, coming on a Sean Brewer two-run homer and an RBI fielder?s choice by Jay Johnson. The Musketeers plated four more in the next inning on a Matt Lucas RBI single and a two-run base hit by Johnson.
But the Bearcats came back to life in the fourth, getting three more on Pickerell?s second roundtripper, another three-run shot to take a lead they would not relinquish. The Muskies score a single run in the bottom of the inning on another Lucas RBI single and the Bearcats matched that tally in the seventh on a Dorrmann fielder?s choice.
The Bearcats put the game away with a 10 run ninth inning, tallying just three hits during the frame. Xavier hurler Mark Grissom walked six batters in the inning and hit another, while Pickerell hit a solo homer and Dorrmann added a grand slam.
XU starter Mike Gallagher was tagged with the loss after allowing 10 runs and 12 hits in four innings of work. Bouldin pitched an inning and two-thirds, allowing one run and five hits before turning it over to Hunt. Hunt allowed just two hits and struck out one in the final 4.2 innings.
Cincinnati improves to 13-30 on the year with the win, while Xavier falls to 18-22-2. The same two teams return to the field at Xavier at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.