University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
Army
UMass Baseball Edged By Army, 2-1
March 15, 2015 | Baseball
TAMPA, Fla. - Despite a stellar 2015 debut for UMass baseball senior Andrew Grant on the mound, an unearned run proved to be the difference as Army (9-4) defeated the Minutemen (0-3), 2-1 on Sunday afternoon at Jesuit High School.
UMass had a runner reach third with less than two outs in the top of the first and escaped a bases loaded, one out, jam with a double play ball of its own in the bottom of the third to keep things scoreless.
Then in the top of the fifth, the Minutemen broke through for the first run of the day. Redshirt senior Adam Picard hustled out an infield single, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and to third on a wild pitch before coming home on a sacrifice fly by Paul Yanakopulos.
The Black Knights tied the score, though, in the bottom of the sixth. Mark McCants led off with a double to left, went to third on a sacrifice bunt, and scored on a fly ball by Jacob Page.
Army brought around the deciding run with just one hit in the seventh. Kris Lindner led off with a single up the middle and, while stealing second, was able to come home as a result of a pair of UMass errors on the play.
Junior Vinny Scifo opened the Minutemen's half of the eighth with a walk and reached third after a sacrifice and a wild pitch, but Matt Ball picked up a strikeout to end the threat. Ball threw two innings of hitless relief and earned the save with one walk and three strikeouts.
Grant took the loss (0-1) in his start for UMass despite limiting the Black Knights to just two runs, one earned, while scattering four hits with four walks and eight strikeouts. Army reliever Justin French earned the win (1-1) after tossing one scoreless inning of relief, while giving up one hit, walking one and striking out one.
Yanakopulos paced the Minutemen bats with a 2-for-3 afternoon at the plate and an RBI, while Lindner hit 2-for-3 with a run scored for Army.
UMass will be back in action on Tuesday, March 17, when the squad will face Harvard in a doubleheader in Winter Haven, Fla.
