University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
George Washington
George Washington Nips Baseball, 6-5
April 30, 2010 | Baseball
April 30, 2010
AMHERST, Mass. - Sophomore Nick Serino matched his career high with 13 strikeouts, but George Washington used timely hitting take game one, 6-5, over the UMass baseball squad on Friday afternoon at Earl Lorden Field. The setback leaves the Minutemen at 10-22 overall and 7-9 in the Atlantic 10, while the Colonials improve to 23-19 and 11-5 in conference games.
With two down in the top of the first, George Washington took a 2-0 lead with one swing of the bat. Chris Holland lofted a two-run homer to right, scoring Tom Zebroski, who began the inning with a four-pitch walk.
UMass halved its deficit in the bottom of the frame. Freshman Ryan Cusick lifted a ball to right that carried out of the reach of Tyler McCarthy for a double. After moving to third on a ground ball, Cusick came home on a two-out RBI single, poked through the right side by senior Mike Donato.
The Minutemen then climbed on top 3-2, in the bottom of the second. Senior Mike Gedman drew a walk with one away and junior Kyle Multner was later hit by a pitch. Then with two on and two-down, a ball hit by Cusick was misplayed in right, allowing both Gedman and Multner to score.
The lead was brief, however, as Zabroski hit a game-tying homer to begin the Colonials' half of the third, knotting the score at 3-3.
UMass fought back as Multner singled to center to begin his squad's half of the fifth. Cusick sacrificed him over to second, while junior Eric Fredette singled to move the runner to third. Multner then crossed the plate on an RBI groundout by junior Matt Gedman to put the Minutemen back in front, 4-3.
George Washington countered once again, tying the score at four in the top of the sixth. Jon Chirumbolo started things off with a single to right and later came home on a two-out RBI base knock by Zebroski.
The Colonials regained the lead for good the following inning with another timely two-out hit. Chris Luick sent a one-out single down the right field line and Brendon Kelliher plated him with a double down the left field line. Kelliher then came in on an error for the second run of the frame, which brought the score to 6-4.
UMass took one of the runs back in the bottom of the seventh. Multner led off by dropping a single into shallow center and came around to score when Matt Gedman drove a two-out double to the fence in left.
That would be as close as the Minutemen would come, however, as George Washington hurler Ryan LaPointe went the distance to earn the win (6-4). LaPointe allowed five runs, three earned, on eight hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Serino took the loss (1-5) for UMass, working 6.2 innings. He surrendered six runs, five earned, on six hits and walked four.
Mike Gedman and Multner combined for four of the Minutemen's eight hits, both going 2-for-3 at the plate. Multner scored three times, while Matt Gedman drove in a pair of runs. Fredette's single extended his hitting streak to a team-best 14 straight games.
Zebroski contributed three of the Colonials' eight hits as he finished the day 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Luick had a pair of singles (2-for-5), while Holland drove in a pair.
The squads will continue their weekend series tomorrow, Saturday, May 1, at 1 p.m. on Earl Lorden Field.
