TicketsApril 1, 2006
CINCINNATI, Ohio---Cincinnati carried a strong start to the weekend on Friday night into Saturday, topping South Florida in both the suspended contest and the regularly scheduled game in BIG EAST action at the UC Baseball Stadium. The Bearcats secured a 9-4 win in the game that started last night, before scoring a 7-4 triumph in game two. The wins were key for UC after being swept last weekend at Connecticut. The pair of victories improves Cincinnati's record to 15-10 overall and 2-3 in league play.
Jon DeLuca spearheaded the Bearcat offense, going 5 for 7 in the set with six RBI. In game one, DeLuca matched the school record for doubles in a game with three. Logan Parker went 3 for 4 in game two, with a double and a triple.
USF falls to 14-13 overall and 5-2 in league play with the pair of setbacks.
"This is a really big day for us to come out with two victories," said UC head coach Brian Cleary. "I was really pleased with our effort today as I don't think we had competed as hard as we wanted to lately. I think it's fair to say these two days are as good of baseball as we have played consecutively all season. USF is a good team and for us to respond the way we did is a very good thing."
In the contest that was started on Friday night, the Bearcats got off to a hot start, jumping to a 5-0 lead after two innings. Mark Muscenti got UC on the board in the first inning, recording an RBI groundout with the bases loaded. DeLuca then came through with his first big hit of the game, lacing a two-run double to right center. An inning later, the Bearcats put together a two-out rally, getting a Parker RBI single to start the scoring. With the bases once again loaded, Muscenti was hit by a Casey Hudspeth offering to force home a run.
USF would cut its deficit to three in the third when UC starter Glen Simon walked Addison Maruszak with the bases loaded, then yielded a sacrifice fly to Kris Howell. The Bulls then ran themselves out of the inning as Ty Taborelli was thrown out at home on an attempted double steal. USF would score once in the fourth when Nick Cardieri lifted a sacrifice fly that plated Matt McHargue.
Cincinnati increased its lead to 6-3 in the fifth inning, when DeLuca again doubled, this time scoring Muscenti. The Bulls got that run right back in the top of the sixth when Brendan Daniel launched a homer over the high wall in dead centerfield. Just after the third out was recorded in the frame, lightning and an ensuing thunderstorm ended the evening's festivities.
When action resumed this afternoon, UC went right back to work, taking advantage of six straight walks by two USF pitchers to put three more runs on the board for the final 9-4 count.
In addition to DeLuca's big day in game one, Josh Harrison went 2 for 4 with three runs scored and Nelson and Muscenti each scored twice. Simon got his BIG EAST-best fifth win of the year by outdueling all-conference preseason pick Hudsepth. Sean Munninghoff worked the final three frames for his first career save.
The regularly scheduled contest had much the same start as the opener as a Parker double and a DeLuca single brought home two UC runs in the first inning. The Bulls answered in the top of the second as an RBI fielder's choice and a Brad Karns double evened the score at two. The Bearcat offense struck again in the last of the second and a two-run double by Harrison put Cincinnati ahead to stay.
Neither team would dent the scoreboard again until the last of the sixth, when UC gave itself a three-run cushion. Muscenti got the ball rolling, beating out an infield single with the bases loaded, paving the way for a DeLuca sacrifice fly and an Adam Yeager run-scoring single.
The outburst proved to be a blessing for UC as Taborelli hit a two-run homer off of Steve Blevins in the top of the seventh inning to close USF to 7-4. That would be the closest the Bulls would come, though as Blevins bounced back to record two straight strikeouts, before turning the mound over to A.J. Upton. Upton then worked the final two frames in shutout fashion to preserve the Cincinnati win.
Blevins turned in one of the finest outings of his short career, allowing four runs on eight hits with five strikeouts in a career-high seven innings.
Parker was the leader of a Bearcat offense that had five players with multiple hits. DeLuca and Harrison added multi-RBI in the victory.
Cincinnati, having now clinched its first-ever BIG EAST series victory, will go for the sweep tomorrow. Fans should note the game will now start at Noon, not 1 p.m. as originally scheduled.