TicketsGREENVILLE, N.C. – The University of Cincinnati baseball team dropped its American Athletic Conference opener 5-4 to No. 11 East Carolina after leading the Pirates most of the way, Thursday at Clark-LeClair Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina.
Cincinnati (11-11, 0-1 AAC) led 4-2 entering the seventh but reliever Connor Linn ran into some trouble with one out and a runner on second. ECU's (19-5, 1-0 AAC) Seth Caddell doubled down the left-field line on a full count to score Thomas Francisco and later, Alec Makarewicz hit a two-out home run to left field to score Caddel and give the Pirates a 5-2 edge.
RHP Zach Segal made his first collegiate start a quality one, throwing six innings, scattering two runs on eight hits with three walks and six strikeouts. He gave up a pair in the bottom of the first inning but settled in from there and the only runner who advanced to third base was thrown out by a throw from RF Paul Komistek to C Joe Powell to end the sixth inning.
UC started to pull back in the second as Ryan Nicholson put the Bearcats on the board with a two-out, RBI single to left center which scored Joey Bellini from third.
Bellini led off the fourth with a single, advanced to second on a Komistek bunt single, took third on a sacrifice bunt from Jake Hansen and scored on an Eric Santiago RBI ground out to knot things up at 2-2.
Powell led off the fifth with a single and a Cole Harting double scored Powell. Jace Mercer was next and reached on an infield single which sent Harting to third. Wyatt Stapp was next and poked a single through the right side to score Harting, chasing ECU starter Carson Whisenhunt from the game. Saylor entered and struck out the side to end the threat.
Linn took the loss while ECU's Garrett Saylor (2-0) earned the win. UC's final 12 batters were retired in order by the Pirates bullpen.
UP NEXT
The Bearcats and Pirates return to the diamond Friday, continuing their four-game series at 4 p.m. ET. UC LHP Dean McCarthy squares off against ECU RHP Gavin Williams. The game will air on ESPN+ with live stats on BearcatStats.com.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Baseball season-ticket packages for 2021 are on sale, priced at $50 for adults and $30 for youths (aged 4-12), seniors (age 65 and up), UC faculty and staff and members of the military. Get your season tickets to lock in your seats! Make your purchase online.
Make your purchase online today! Contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 1-877-CATS-TIX with any questions.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati baseball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow UC baseball (@GoBearcatsBase) and Coach Googins (@CoachGoogs) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.
Cincinnati (11-11, 0-1 AAC) led 4-2 entering the seventh but reliever Connor Linn ran into some trouble with one out and a runner on second. ECU's (19-5, 1-0 AAC) Seth Caddell doubled down the left-field line on a full count to score Thomas Francisco and later, Alec Makarewicz hit a two-out home run to left field to score Caddel and give the Pirates a 5-2 edge.
RHP Zach Segal made his first collegiate start a quality one, throwing six innings, scattering two runs on eight hits with three walks and six strikeouts. He gave up a pair in the bottom of the first inning but settled in from there and the only runner who advanced to third base was thrown out by a throw from RF Paul Komistek to C Joe Powell to end the sixth inning.
UC started to pull back in the second as Ryan Nicholson put the Bearcats on the board with a two-out, RBI single to left center which scored Joey Bellini from third.
Bellini led off the fourth with a single, advanced to second on a Komistek bunt single, took third on a sacrifice bunt from Jake Hansen and scored on an Eric Santiago RBI ground out to knot things up at 2-2.
Powell led off the fifth with a single and a Cole Harting double scored Powell. Jace Mercer was next and reached on an infield single which sent Harting to third. Wyatt Stapp was next and poked a single through the right side to score Harting, chasing ECU starter Carson Whisenhunt from the game. Saylor entered and struck out the side to end the threat.
Linn took the loss while ECU's Garrett Saylor (2-0) earned the win. UC's final 12 batters were retired in order by the Pirates bullpen.
UP NEXT
The Bearcats and Pirates return to the diamond Friday, continuing their four-game series at 4 p.m. ET. UC LHP Dean McCarthy squares off against ECU RHP Gavin Williams. The game will air on ESPN+ with live stats on BearcatStats.com.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Baseball season-ticket packages for 2021 are on sale, priced at $50 for adults and $30 for youths (aged 4-12), seniors (age 65 and up), UC faculty and staff and members of the military. Get your season tickets to lock in your seats! Make your purchase online.
Make your purchase online today! Contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 1-877-CATS-TIX with any questions.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati baseball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow UC baseball (@GoBearcatsBase) and Coach Googins (@CoachGoogs) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.