May 10, 2008

West Point, N.Y. and Annapolis, Md. - It's do-or-die time in the Patriot League Baseball Tournament Semifinals, as splits of doubleheaders in the Bucknell/Army and Holy Cross/Navy series on Saturday leave a one-game, winner-take-all scenario in both matchups on Sunday afternoon.

No. 4 seed Bucknell won the first game at No. 1 Army, 5-4, in 10 innings before the Black Knights came back to take the nightcap, 12-3. No. 3 Holy Cross also won the opener on the road at No. 2 Navy, 6-0, before the Mids returned the favor with a 12-1 victory in game two. The designated visiting team won all four contests on Saturday, as Army and Navy hit first on their home field in their game two victories.

The two spots in next weekend's Patriot League Championship series will be decided in game three of both series on Sunday afternoon, with Holy Cross at Navy at Noon and Bucknell at Army beginning at 1 p.m.

Bucknell (23-22-2, 10-10 Patriot League) won a tightly contested game at Army (24-24, 13-7 PL) in the opener at West Point. The Bison got off quickly with a 3-1 lead through two innings, and held a 4-1 advantage heading into the bottom of the fifth. Army cut the deficit to 4-3 with a pair of two-out RBI hits, with Cole White's run-scoring triple followed by Kevin McKague's double. In the seventh, McKague struck again with another RBI double to tie the score at 4-4 and chase Bucknell starting pitcher Mat Wilson.

Bucknell's Jason Buursma, who received his Patriot League Player of the Year award earlier in the day, came in to finish the seventh inning, and kept the Black Knights off the board heading into extra innings. Ben Allen delivered the big blow for the Bison in the extra frames, belting an opposite field home run to lead off the 10th inning and put the Bison up, 5-4. Buursma completed his 3.2 innings of scoreless work by shutting down Army in order in the bottom of the frame to earn the victory and improve to 6-3 for the season.

Allen was 4-for-5 with three runs scored and two RBI to lead the Bison, while Dane Grandizio also homered. Chris Simmons homered for Army, while McKague drove in two runs. Army starter Drew Clothier allowed four runs (three earned) in 8.2 innings. Ben Koenigsfeld took the loss for the Black Knights.

In a must-win situation, Army quickly took control of the nightcap with a seven-run fourth inning. The Black Knights were down, 2-1, going into the frame, but jumped ahead on a two-run home run by Simmons. Patriot League Rookie of the Year Clint Moore, who homered earlier in the game, came through with a two-out, two-run double to make it 5-2. Andy Ernesto followed with a run-scoring single, and McKague capped the inning with a two-run single to put Army up, 8-2, at the end of the frame.

Army padded its lead by scoring in each of the next three innings, and it was more than enough to back starting pitcher Matt Fouch. The First-Team All-Patriot League starting pitcher came through with three runs allowed over 6.2 innings of work to improve his record to 6-2.

All nine Army starters had at least one hit in the 12-run, 17-hit effort. Moore finished 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored, while J.P. Polchinski was 2-for-5 with two runs and two RBI. Every starter had either a run or an RBI, while five of the nine players had at least one of each. Grandizio drove in two runs for the Bison. Dylan Seeley took the loss for Bucknell, pitching 3.2 innings and surrendering seven runs, only two of which were earned.

Holy Cross (21-27, 11-9 PL) and Navy (31-23-1, 11-9 PL) alternated outstanding pitching performances in each of their victories in Annapolis. The strong outing in game one went to the Crusaders, with Bobby Holmes going six innings with three hits and one walk allowed while striking out three to move his record to 5-4 with the 6-0 victory. Ryan George pitched the final three innings to get the save.

The game was scoreless until the fifth, when the Crusaders broke loose for four runs against Navy starter Mitch Harris. Brendan Akashian drew a bases-loaded walk to get Holy Cross on the board with one out. Gil Gomez followed with a run-scoring single to make it 2-0, and Eric Oxford came up with a sacrifice fly to put another run on the board. Akashian came around to score on an error to complete the scoring in the frame.

Akashian and Gomez came through again in the next inning, as they both registered RBI singles to give Holy Cross the 6-0 advantage would eventually serve as the final. Akashian finished 1-for-4 with a run and two RBI, while Gomez was 3-for-5 with two RBI. Brendan McCrea went 2-for-2 and scored twice.

Thomas Hamilton had two of Navy's five hits in the opener as the Mids left 11 runners on base. Harris took the loss after giving up five runs, four earned, while striking out five in his 5.1 innings of work.

Navy broke out the bats in game two, scoring two runs in the first inning of Crusader starter and Patriot League Pitcher of the Year Matt Shapiro. Bolt and Mitch Harris both recorded two-out RBI singles to give the Mids the early advantage.

It stayed that way until the fourth, when the Mids added another run on a single by Mike Guadagnini. A two-run home run by Jeff Bland made it 5-0 in the fifth, and Navy put the game out of reach with a seven-run sixth inning to go ahead, 12-0. Hamilton had a two-run double and Guadagnini recorded a two-run single in the frame.

That was more than enough for Navy starting pitcher Oliver Drake, who struck out nine and allowed just one run and seven hits over 7.2 innings of work. Drake ran his record to 6-3 for the season. Bolt went 4-for-6 with two runs and two RBI for the Mids, while Guadagnini was 3-for-5 with a run and three RBI and Nick Driscoll went 2-for-5 with two runs and an RBI in the nightcap.

Shapiro gave up nine runs in five innings pitched to take the loss. Akashian was 3-for-3 in the contest.

Sunday's games will mark the first time since 2003 that a Patriot League Tournament series went to a game three. In that year, Bucknell beat Navy to claim the Championship. Prior to this season, the Patriot League Tournament was a three-team event and only the Championship series was a best-of-three.

As the No. 1 seed, Army will host the Championship series if it wins on Sunday. The winner of the Holy Cross/Navy contest will host the series if Army loses. The Patriot League Championship series begins on May 17.

For full box scores, schedules and more information, go to the Patriot League Baseball Championship page

For full recaps from institution websites, click on the school name below.

Bucknell

Army

Holy Cross

Navy