TicketsHOUSTON – The University of Cincinnati baseball team used a strong pitching performance from Zach Segal and a pair of big offensive innings to sweep a Friday doubleheader over Houston, 7-0 in the nightcap at Schroeder Park.
Cincinnati (21-18, 10-8 American Athletic Conference) hurlers Segal and Max Bergmann combined on the team's second shutout of the season with Segal going eight innings and Bergmann tossing a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
Segal scattered four hits with three strikeouts and three walks, throwing a season-high 109 pitches as he moved to 5-3 on the season. He worked out of a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the eighth, striking out two batters and inducing a line out.
Jace Mercer got the Bearcats on the board with two outs in the fifth, doubling to the left-field corner to score Wyatt Stapp. Mercer scored on the next play as Joey Bellini reached on an error by the UH third baseman, one of three errors for the Cougars in the game.
The errors came to haunt UH in the sixth when Griffin Merritt reached on a throwing error after a strikeout which scored Ryan Nicholson. Tanner Holen scored on a wild pitch to Stapp and Cole Harting later reached on a fielder's choice which scored Merritt and UC led 6-0.
NOTABLE
• Merritt had a two-out single in the ninth which scored Nicholson to make the final tally 7-0. He had five RBIs on the day.
• Mercer finished 2-for-4 with a. walk, double, RBI, stolen base and run scored. He was at the plate 10 times on Friday, reaching base on eight with six hits and two walks.
• Nicholson was 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and a stolen base.
• The Bearcats entered Friday with a 39-game streak of its pitchers tallying five or more strikeouts in a game which ended as the pitchers combined for seven strikeouts in two games, three in game one and four in game two.
UP NEXT
Bearcats LHP Evan Shawver returns to the hill Saturday, making his first start in over a month at 3 p.m. ET in Schroeder Park. Houston RHP Ben Sears will oppose him in game three of the series, televised on ESPN+ with live stats on BearcatStats.com.
WATCH • LIVE STATS
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 (21-18, 10-8 American Athletic Conference) hurlers Segal and Max Bergmann combined on the team's second shutout of the season with Segal going eight innings and Bergmann tossing a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
Segal scattered four hits with three strikeouts and three walks, throwing a season-high 109 pitches as he moved to 5-3 on the season. He worked out of a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the eighth, striking out two batters and inducing a line out.
Jace Mercer got the Bearcats on the board with two outs in the fifth, doubling to the left-field corner to score Wyatt Stapp. Mercer scored on the next play as Joey Bellini reached on an error by the UH third baseman, one of three errors for the Cougars in the game.
The errors came to haunt UH in the sixth when Griffin Merritt reached on a throwing error after a strikeout which scored Ryan Nicholson. Tanner Holen scored on a wild pitch to Stapp and Cole Harting later reached on a fielder's choice which scored Merritt and UC led 6-0.
NOTABLE
• Merritt had a two-out single in the ninth which scored Nicholson to make the final tally 7-0. He had five RBIs on the day.
• Mercer finished 2-for-4 with a. walk, double, RBI, stolen base and run scored. He was at the plate 10 times on Friday, reaching base on eight with six hits and two walks.
• Nicholson was 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and a stolen base.
• The Bearcats entered Friday with a 39-game streak of its pitchers tallying five or more strikeouts in a game which ended as the pitchers combined for seven strikeouts in two games, three in game one and four in game two.
UP NEXT
Bearcats LHP Evan Shawver returns to the hill Saturday, making his first start in over a month at 3 p.m. ET in Schroeder Park. Houston RHP Ben Sears will oppose him in game three of the series, televised on ESPN+ with live stats on BearcatStats.com.
WATCH • LIVE STATS
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.