TicketsMay 10, 2008
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J.---Dan Osterbrock tied the school record for wins in a career and Mike Spina hit his 13th home run of the year, leading Cincinnati to an important 4-1 win over Seton Hall in game one of a Saturday doubleheader at Owen T. Carroll Field.
In a contest pitting two of the best pitchers in the BIG EAST in Cincinnati's Osterbrock and Seton Hall's Corey Young, it was Osterbrock coming out ahead, picking up his seventh win of the year and the 19th of his career. The milestone victory ties the Cincinnati native with four other pitchers atop the all-time wins list at UC. The Bearcats improve to 31-18 overall and 15-7 in BIG EAST play and hold onto third place in the league standings, now two games ahead of the Pirates (28-19, 13-9 BIG EAST).
Spina's homer was one of nine hits on the day for the Bearcats, with the UC third baseman also adding a single. Josh Harrison went 3-for-3 at the plate with a double, a run, an RBI and a walk. Chris Peters tacked on a pair of hits for the Bearcats.
The Pirates' Young (7-3) was in firm control at the outset, recording strikeouts on five of the Bearcats' first nine outs. Osterbrock meanwhile, worked out of a bases loaded, two-out jam in the second by getting Dan Lopez to foul out to Harrison at second base.
The game remained scoreless until the sixth when Cincinnati finally put two on the board. Harrison drew a one out walk and then Spina came up big in one of the more pitcher-friendly ball parks in the BIG EAST, drilling a two-run homer to center to stake the Bearcats to a 2-0 lead.
Cincinnati scratched out another run an inning later in what would prove to be Young's final frame. Justin Riddell drew a lead-off walk and Peters bunted pinch-runner Michael Obyc over to put a runner in scoring position. Following an out and a walk to Jamel Scott, Harrison greeted reliever Keith Cantwell with a clean single up the middle for a 3-0 UC advantage.
Osterbock's day also came to an end in the seventh after two singles and a wild pitch put two runners in scoring position with one out. A.J. Rusbarsky then plated the Pirates' only run with an RBI groundout that spelled the end of the day for Osterbrock.
UC played add on once more in the ninth as a Scott single up the middle plated Peters who reached on a one out double.
Osterbock's final line showed just one run allowed on eight hits with no walks and two strikeouts. Geglein went the final 2.1 innings, earning his eighth save. The save moved Geglein into a tie for fourth in school history in career saves (10) and into third on the single season chart.
Seton Hall, which finished with nine hits, got two apiece from Mark Pappas, Chris Affinito and Chris Fontenelli. Young had solid numbers in defeat, allowing three runs on five hits in 6.2 innings, while walking four and striking out seven.