University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Sunday, April 23
Buies Creek, NC
1 PM
UNC Asheville
17-23, 7-8
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9
Campbell
18-22, 6-9
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UNC Asheville
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11
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Campbell
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Photo by: UNC Asheville
Bulldogs Keep the Offense Rolling with 11-9 Win Over Campbell
04.23.2017 | Baseball
BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Following Saturday's heart-breaking loss to Campbell, the UNC Asheville baseball coaching staff issued a challenge to the Bulldogs: continue to play as well as they had for most of the last two games and with heart, no matter the out-come.
The Bulldogs (17-23, 7-8 Big South) answered the call Sunday afternoon, battling through less-than-ideal weather conditions as well as some late adversity to take the Big South Conference series 2-1 over the Camels (18-22, 6-9) with an 11-9 victory at Jim Perry Stadium.
The come-from-behind victory marked the fourth win for the Bulldogs in the last six games and secured the fifth weekend series victory on the season for UNC Asheville, including the weekend in Spartanburg in the second weekend of the season. It was also the first Big South Conference series win at Campbell for UNC Asheville since the 1990 season.
UNC Asheville drew first blood in the top of the first when Joe Tietjen hit a single to left field, scoring Danny Wilson. Wilson broke through earlier in the inning for the first hit of the game and then stole second to set himself up perfectly for Tietjen.
The Camels took three innings to find an answer, tying things up at 1-1 in the bottom of the third, but it was a short-lived victory as the Bulldogs plated four in the top of the fourth to retake the lead.
Freshman catcher Joe Gruszka led off the scoring in the fourth frame by drawing a walk before moving to second on a Brandon Lankford single. Chris Troost then laid down a beautiful sacrifice bunt that the Campbell pitcher threw away, allowing Gruszka to score.
After a pitching change, Tanner Bush loaded the bases when he wore a pitch, setting up another prime scoring opportunity with no outs registered on the board. Carmine Pagano took advantage of the situation, sending a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Lankford to set the score at 3-1.
Wilson then drew his first of four walks of the game in the next at-bat to reload the bases before Tietjen forced the Camels' third baseman into an error, scoring Troost in the process. Bush rounded out the scoring in the inning by racing home on a wild pitch to push UNC Asheville ahead 5-1.
The Bulldogs hit pay dirt again in the top of the sixth when Wilson scored on a wild pitch, setting the score at 6-1, but Campbell made things interesting by rebounding in the bottom of the seventh inning by scoring four runs before taking the lead with two runs in the bottom of the eighth.
Despite being down by a run, the Bulldogs kept pounding and fighting on offense to retake the lead with five runs in the top of the ninth, including two before the Camels could register an out on the board.
Lankford led off the ninth by reaching safely on a wild pitch despite striking out. Greg Gasparro promptly came in to pinch run for his fellow freshman. After Derek Smith laid down a great bunt that moved Gasparro over to second, the two base runners advanced a base on another wild pitch by the Campbell pitcher, forcing a pitching change.
With nobody out, Bush continued his solid weekend by laying down a perfect bunt for a single that scored Gasparro to tie things back up at seven-all. Pagano then gave the Bulldogs the lead back with a sharply-hit single that ricocheted off the Campbell pitcher, giving Smith plenty of time to score.
After Wilson drew his fourth walk of the game to load the bases, Tietjen sent a rocket to left field. The Campbell left fielder miss-read the ball and in the ensuing chaos, both Bush and Pagano scored, extending the lead out to 10-7.
Two at-bats later, Justin Woods hit a sacrifice fly to center field and scored Wilson to round out the Bulldogs' scoring.
In the bottom of the inning, Campbell attempted to rekindle the same late-game magic from a day earlier. The Camels were able to score two runs, but Eric Whitecavage and the Bulldog defense slammed the door to secure the 11-9 win.
Pagano, Tietjen and Bush all had multi-hit days, recording two hits in the contest. Both Pagano and Tietjen had two RBIs with Pagano scoring a run. Bush scored twice and batted another in and ended his weekend with three extra-base knocks.
Joe Zayatz started the game on the mound for UNC Asheville but gave way to Brandon Harris, Kole Harris and Whitecavage. Whitecavage (3-0) earned his third win on the year as he pitched the final 1.2 innings. B. Harris had three strikeouts in his 5.2 innings of work.
For Campbell, Wyatt Tyson (1-3) was the pitcher of record as the Camels trotted five different pitchers out to the mound. The Camels walked eight batters, bringing the weekend total to 23 Bulldogs walked.
BULLDOG BITES
BREAKING A 27-YEAR TREND: Sunday's 11-9 win marked the first time since the 1990 season that a UNC Asheville baseball team had claimed a Big South Conference series in Buies Creek, N.C. That year, the Bulldogs swept the Camels en route to finishing 25-25 and 8-9 in conference play, finishing third in the league standings.
FRIDAY'S WIN: Due to the way the conference schedules baseball series, the Bulldogs and Camels had not played each other since the 2014 season. Friday's 10-5 win over the Camels marked the first win in the overall series for UNC Asheville since the second game of a three-game series in 2012.
BUSH'S EXTRA-BASE KNOCKS: Tanner Bush hit his third double of the series Sunday afternoon.
WALKING INTO THE RECORD BOOK: Sophomore Danny Wilson drew four walks in his final four at-bats Sunday afternoon, giving him 36 for the year. The 36 walks moves Wilson into the top-10 for walks in a single season.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will close out the current five-game road swing with a game at Furman on Tuesday, Apri25. First pitch will be at 6 p.m. The game against the Paladins will be the last game in the month of April for UNC Asheville. Following the game at Furman, the Bulldogs will host Appalachian State on Tuesday, May 2.
QUOTABLES
"I'm proud of the way our guys responded after the tough loss yesterday. It wasn't pretty at times, but sometimes you have to win ugly. Now, we have to forget about it and get ready to play at Furman on Tuesday." – Scott Friedholm
The Bulldogs (17-23, 7-8 Big South) answered the call Sunday afternoon, battling through less-than-ideal weather conditions as well as some late adversity to take the Big South Conference series 2-1 over the Camels (18-22, 6-9) with an 11-9 victory at Jim Perry Stadium.
The come-from-behind victory marked the fourth win for the Bulldogs in the last six games and secured the fifth weekend series victory on the season for UNC Asheville, including the weekend in Spartanburg in the second weekend of the season. It was also the first Big South Conference series win at Campbell for UNC Asheville since the 1990 season.
UNC Asheville drew first blood in the top of the first when Joe Tietjen hit a single to left field, scoring Danny Wilson. Wilson broke through earlier in the inning for the first hit of the game and then stole second to set himself up perfectly for Tietjen.
The Camels took three innings to find an answer, tying things up at 1-1 in the bottom of the third, but it was a short-lived victory as the Bulldogs plated four in the top of the fourth to retake the lead.
Freshman catcher Joe Gruszka led off the scoring in the fourth frame by drawing a walk before moving to second on a Brandon Lankford single. Chris Troost then laid down a beautiful sacrifice bunt that the Campbell pitcher threw away, allowing Gruszka to score.
After a pitching change, Tanner Bush loaded the bases when he wore a pitch, setting up another prime scoring opportunity with no outs registered on the board. Carmine Pagano took advantage of the situation, sending a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Lankford to set the score at 3-1.
Wilson then drew his first of four walks of the game in the next at-bat to reload the bases before Tietjen forced the Camels' third baseman into an error, scoring Troost in the process. Bush rounded out the scoring in the inning by racing home on a wild pitch to push UNC Asheville ahead 5-1.
The Bulldogs hit pay dirt again in the top of the sixth when Wilson scored on a wild pitch, setting the score at 6-1, but Campbell made things interesting by rebounding in the bottom of the seventh inning by scoring four runs before taking the lead with two runs in the bottom of the eighth.
Despite being down by a run, the Bulldogs kept pounding and fighting on offense to retake the lead with five runs in the top of the ninth, including two before the Camels could register an out on the board.
Lankford led off the ninth by reaching safely on a wild pitch despite striking out. Greg Gasparro promptly came in to pinch run for his fellow freshman. After Derek Smith laid down a great bunt that moved Gasparro over to second, the two base runners advanced a base on another wild pitch by the Campbell pitcher, forcing a pitching change.
With nobody out, Bush continued his solid weekend by laying down a perfect bunt for a single that scored Gasparro to tie things back up at seven-all. Pagano then gave the Bulldogs the lead back with a sharply-hit single that ricocheted off the Campbell pitcher, giving Smith plenty of time to score.
After Wilson drew his fourth walk of the game to load the bases, Tietjen sent a rocket to left field. The Campbell left fielder miss-read the ball and in the ensuing chaos, both Bush and Pagano scored, extending the lead out to 10-7.
Two at-bats later, Justin Woods hit a sacrifice fly to center field and scored Wilson to round out the Bulldogs' scoring.
In the bottom of the inning, Campbell attempted to rekindle the same late-game magic from a day earlier. The Camels were able to score two runs, but Eric Whitecavage and the Bulldog defense slammed the door to secure the 11-9 win.
Pagano, Tietjen and Bush all had multi-hit days, recording two hits in the contest. Both Pagano and Tietjen had two RBIs with Pagano scoring a run. Bush scored twice and batted another in and ended his weekend with three extra-base knocks.
Joe Zayatz started the game on the mound for UNC Asheville but gave way to Brandon Harris, Kole Harris and Whitecavage. Whitecavage (3-0) earned his third win on the year as he pitched the final 1.2 innings. B. Harris had three strikeouts in his 5.2 innings of work.
For Campbell, Wyatt Tyson (1-3) was the pitcher of record as the Camels trotted five different pitchers out to the mound. The Camels walked eight batters, bringing the weekend total to 23 Bulldogs walked.
BULLDOG BITES
BREAKING A 27-YEAR TREND: Sunday's 11-9 win marked the first time since the 1990 season that a UNC Asheville baseball team had claimed a Big South Conference series in Buies Creek, N.C. That year, the Bulldogs swept the Camels en route to finishing 25-25 and 8-9 in conference play, finishing third in the league standings.
FRIDAY'S WIN: Due to the way the conference schedules baseball series, the Bulldogs and Camels had not played each other since the 2014 season. Friday's 10-5 win over the Camels marked the first win in the overall series for UNC Asheville since the second game of a three-game series in 2012.
BUSH'S EXTRA-BASE KNOCKS: Tanner Bush hit his third double of the series Sunday afternoon.
WALKING INTO THE RECORD BOOK: Sophomore Danny Wilson drew four walks in his final four at-bats Sunday afternoon, giving him 36 for the year. The 36 walks moves Wilson into the top-10 for walks in a single season.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will close out the current five-game road swing with a game at Furman on Tuesday, Apri25. First pitch will be at 6 p.m. The game against the Paladins will be the last game in the month of April for UNC Asheville. Following the game at Furman, the Bulldogs will host Appalachian State on Tuesday, May 2.
QUOTABLES
"I'm proud of the way our guys responded after the tough loss yesterday. It wasn't pretty at times, but sometimes you have to win ugly. Now, we have to forget about it and get ready to play at Furman on Tuesday." – Scott Friedholm
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Whitecavage, Eric (3-0)
L: TYSON, Wyatt (1-3)
Batting:
2B: Bush, Tanner 1
3B: Carruthers, Kyle 1
RBI: Pagano, Carmine 2 ; Tietjen, Joe 2 ; Woods, Justin 1 ; Bush, Tanner 1
SH: Troost, Chris 1 ; Smith, Derek 1
SF: Pagano, Carmine 1 ; Woods, Justin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Pagano, Carmine 1 ; Wilson, Danny 3 ; Gruszka, Joe 1 ; Lankford, Brandon 1 ; Gasparro, Greg 1 ; Troost, Chris 1 ; Smith, Derek 1 ; Bush, Tanner 2
SB: Wilson, Danny 1
HBP: Carruthers, Kyle 1 ; Bush, Tanner 1
PO: Tietjen, Joe 1
Batting:
2B: HAHS, Jeff 1 ; CALVANO, Ben 1 ; MYERS, Bryce 1 ; JONES, Christian 1
RBI: HAHS, Jeff 2 ; HALLUM, Cole 2 ; MYERS, Bryce 1 ; JONES, Christian 2
SF: HALLUM, Cole 1
Base Running:
RUNS: BAREFOOT, Matthew 1 ; BUTLER, Drew 3 ; HAHS, Jeff 1 ; CALVANO, Ben 2 ; MYERS, Bryce 1 ; JONES, Christian 1
SB: BUTLER, Drew 2 ; HAHS, Jeff 1 ; MYERS, Bryce 2
HBP: HAHS, Jeff 1 ; MYERS, Bryce 2 ; MEHL, Kyle 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
ss/2b
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
6
R
0
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
1b/ss
AB
2
R
3
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
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LHP/OF
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C
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RHP
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INF/RHP
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INF
/ BaseballINF
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INF
/ BaseballOF
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INF
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RHP
/ BaseballINF/RHP
/ Baseball
OF/RHP
/ Baseball
OF/RHP
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