TicketsApril 12, 2006
CINCINNATI, Ohio---Cincinnati blew open a close game with a five-run sixth inning, then staved off a late Akron rally to take an 11-9 win over the Zips in non-conference action on Wednesday night at the UC Baseball Stadium.
Senior Jack Nelson was the hero for the Bearcats, both at the plate and on the mound in helping Cincinnati to its 11th straight home victory. Nelson homered twice at the dish, driving in five runs, then came into the game on the ninth to notch his first career save. Sean Munninghoff (3-1) got the victory in relief as the Bearcats improved to 19-12 on the year. Akron falls to 7-21 with the setback.
Josh Harrison also had a big game at the plate, going 2 for 5 with a three-run homer. Jon DeLuca added three hits, while LaFringe Hayes had a pair. Mark Muscenti collected a two-run double as part of a 12-hit Bearcat attack.
Akron was led by three hits each by Kurt Davidson and Vince Chiera, while Brian Kimutis tallied a trio of RBI. The Zips took advantage of 12 Bearcat walks, but left 15 men on base in the defeat.
The fireworks started early as the Bearcats took advantage of a first inning Akron error to put three runs on the board. With two out, a throwing error on Zip third baseman Chiera allowed DeLuca to drop an RBI single to centerfield. With two runners on board, Muscenti nearly missed his first home run of the year, instead banging a two-run double off the left field fence.
Akron took advantage of a wild streak by UC starter Adam Calez in the second inning, drawing three straight walks, before Chiera's sacrifice fly made it 3-1. After a single by Rashard Graves reloaded the bases, Ryne Romick lifted a sac fly to left to cut the UC lead to 3-2.
The Zips would again benefit from Calez's wildness in the fifth, chasing the sophomore lefty after back-to-back two-out walks. Chase Liggett greeted reliever Matt Heber with an RBI single through the left side and one batter later Graves walked with the bases loaded to put Akron in front, 4-3.
Cincinnati would reassume the lead in its half of the fifth, as Nelson crushed a three-run bomb to right. Akron made it 6-5 with a run-scoring groundout in the sixth, just prior to UC's five-run explosion. In the bottom of the sixth, Hayes drove a single up the middle to put runners on first and third with two out. Harrison then came up huge, driving his third home run of the year over the right field wall for an 8-6 Bearcat lead. After a single by Parker, Nelson hit his second long ball in as many innings, smashing a Brett Savage offering deep over the right field wall.
To their credit, the Zips fought to the end, getting a single run in the eighth and three more in the ninth. In the final inning, three straight singles to start the inning loaded the bases for Kimutis. Akron's second baseman took a Jake Geglein pitch to the wall in left center, clearing the bases and bringing the score to 11-9. Nelson then made his way to the mound and promptly stuck out Charlie Lenhard. After two straight walks reloaded the bases, Nelson recovered to strike out Doug McNulty and get Liggett to ground to short for the final out of the night.
"Clearly, we didn't pitch as well as we would have liked," UC head coach Brian Cleary said. "But I thought the guys we used did a good job of competing hard. This was just a typical midweek college game. We swung the bats well enough and got the clutch hits when we needed them and that was key."
The Bearcats continue their 10-game homestand tomorrow, opening a three-game BIG EAST series with Rutgers at 6:30 p.m. Freshman Steve Blevins will draw the start on the mound for UC.