SHIPPENSBURG – The 11th/14th-ranked East Stroudsburg University baseball team kept it rolling on Sunday afternoon taking the series finale from Shippensburg, 6-2, at Fairchild Field.
With the sweep, ESU improved to 21-4 overall and sits in sole possession of second place in the PSAC East with a record of 5-1. The Raiders dropped their fourth straight game, sliding to 16-12 on the season and 4-5 in the conference.
The Warriors' pitching staff continued to shine as
Tom Reisinger moved to 4-0 after firing 5.2 innings, yielding two runs (one earned) on four hits while punching out seven Raiders.
Nick McAuliffe was brilliant in relief, throwing the final 3.1 innings in which struck out five batters to collect his third save of the season.
Notables
- Mike Kelly supplied the offense for the Warriors out of the nine hole as the redshirt junior finished 2-for-2 with a walk, four RBI, one run scored and one stolen base
- Sophomore Matt Ervolina went 1-for-4 with one walk, RBI and run as well as a trio of stolen bases
- Going 1-for-1 with a double in three official at-bats, Jeremy Piatkiewicz added two walks and runs scored a piece
- Sophomore Jack Rothenhausler drove in a run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth inning
- Cameron Hubbard (1-for-3) and Parker Frey (1-for-4, one run) also recorded a hit for the Warriors
- ESU recorded seven stolen bases this afternoon and 15 in the series to push their season total to 99. The Warriors ranked fifth in NCAA Division II coming into Sunday's game.
- In the three-game series, ESU's pitching staff surrendered on three runs on 20 hits while striking out 24 Raiders. The Warriors lowered their season ERA to 2.76 after entering the contest with the second-lowest mark in the country at 2.84.
- In this week's rankings, ESU was No. 2 in the NCBWA Atlantic Region Poll and ascended to No. 14 in the NCBWA Top 25. The Warriors slide up to No. 11 in the College Baseball Division II Top 25 and were ranked as high as No. 9 by Perfect Game.
How it Happened – ESU 6, Shippensburg 2 (Game One)
The Raiders struck first in the bottom of the second inning as Brock Piper launched a home run to left field to give Shippensburg a 1-0 lead.
ESU responded in their next at-bats as Kelly came around to score following a leadoff walk to tie it up at 1-1. Kelly stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch before Piripavel walked to put runners on the corners. With no outs, Shippensburg sacrificed a run for an out as Ervolina recorded a RBI on a groundout to the shortstop.
The Warriors took the lead at 3-1 in the top of the fourth inning as Kelly drove in a pair on a single to left field with two outs. Frey got the frame started with a double to left center and Cruz followed with a walk before back-to-background outs set up Kelly, who delivered the clutch hit.
ESU added to their advantage in the top of the fifth frame as Rothenhausler brought in a run on sacrifice fly to make the score 4-1. The stage was set for the sophomore after Ervolina singled and advanced to third following a base knock from Hubbard through the left side.
The Warriors scored for the fourth consecutive inning in the top of the sixth as Piatkiewicz crossed home plate following a leadoff walk to give ESU a 5-1 edge. The junior stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error before Kelly lofted a sacrifice fly into left field.
Shippensburg took advantage of an error by ESU in the bottom half of the inning to cut their deficit to 5-2. With the bases loaded following the miscue and a pair of walk, Gio Calamia scampered home on a wild pitch to get the Raiders within three runs.
ESU pushed across an insurance run in the top of the eighth inning to increase their lead back to 6-2. Piatkiewicz delivered a one-out double and advanced to third as
Tim Haverstick reached on an error by Shippensburg. Kelly produced his fourth RBI of the afternoon on a single that plated Piatkiewicz.
Up Next
The Warriors continue PSAC East play on Friday when Mansfield visits Creekview Park for a single nine-inning game at 2 p.m.
