Cougars Sweep Goshen to Take MCC Series


	Cougar Baseball Recap Cougars Sweep Goshen to Take MCC Series written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game 1 Boxscore \| Game 2 Boxscore MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (4-14-2012) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University baseball team swept a Mid-Central College Conference doubleheader from Goshen (Ind.) College on Saturday afternoon at rainy Cougar Field by the scores of 10-3 and 11-7 as the Cougars took the four-game series 3-1. MVNU (25-13, 16-8 MCC) got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first inning in game one when sophomore outfielder Robert Kane *(left)* lined a one-out single down the rightfield line and then moved all the way around the bases on three wild pitches to score and give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. The visiting Maple Leafs (11-28, 4-20 MCC) took advantage of two errors and a hit batsman to plate three runs in the top of the third inning to go in front 3-1. MVNU got one of the runs back in the bottom of the third inning on a sacrifice fly by Kane to pull within 3-2 after freshman catcher Clint Spencer beat out an infield single to lead off the inning and freshman courtesy runner Andrew Fila stole second base and moved to third on a ground out. Then, in the bottom of the fifth inning, the Cougars took control of the game by scoring six runs after the first two outs were recorded. An RBI single by senior first baseman Josh Roberts off the glove of Corey Johnson in leftfield knotted the score at 3-3. The next batter, sophomore designated hitter Seth Eller, hit a popup to second that was dropped by Josh Schlabach. That opened the door for five unearned runs to score as sophomore third baseman Jeff Stone followed with an RBI double, freshman outfielder Jake Dickerson had a run-scoring single, and junior shortstop Jordan Doherty blasted a two-run homer to left center as MVNU took an 8-3 lead. The Cougars tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning on a two-run single by Eller as MVNU posted the 10-3 victory. Senior pitcher Kyle Barr (6-1) earned the win for the Cougars as he limited Goshen to just four hits, one walk, and three runs (only one earned) with eight strikeouts. Barr notched career win No. 25 to take over seventh place by himself in school history in that category. He also moved up to third place on the school's career strikeout list as he passed former MVNU standouts Jeff Kuder (252), Mike Laughlin (253), and Nick Schwartz (256) to now stand at 259 strikeouts for his career. Paxson Miller started and pitched three innings and allowed just two hits, two walks, and two runs, while Spencer Oversen (3-4) suffered the loss in relief as he gave up five hits, five walks, and eight runs (only three earned) over three innings. Seven different Cougars collected a hit in the contest with Eller and Doherty each driving in two runs. Fila stole a career-high three bases in the game as a courtesy runner, while sophomore outfielder Sean Fleming also stole two bases. "We struggled to get some offense rolling in game one," said MVNU coach Keith Veale. "Robert did a great job of swiping a run in the first inning by being heads up and aggressive. The ball he scored on was a ball in the dirt that didn't travel 10 feet. They left a crack in the door in the bottom of the fifth, and we really blew the door down. We finally strung some quality at bats together and Jordan finished the inning with a ball that got out pretty quick." MVNU got off to a good start in the second game as the Cougars scored four times in bottom of the second inning to take a 4-0 lead. Dickerson had an RBI single, freshman second baseman Sterling Harpst was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in a run, Spencer drove in a run with a fielder's choice, and freshman outfielder Kenny McCambridge put down a sacrifice bunt to score the final run in the inning. The lead grew to 7-0 by the end of the fifth inning as MVNU scored twice in the bottom of the third inning on an RBI triple by Stone and a sacrifice fly by Dickerson, and then the Cougars tacked on another run in the bottom of the fifth inning on a run-scoring single by Doherty. After retiring 12 batters in a row and allowing just one hit through the first five innings, junior lefty Justin Brown (5-3) gave up three runs in the top of the sixth inning before a double play got MVNU out of the jam still leading 7-3 as McCambridge gunned down a runner trying to score on a fly ball to rightfield. In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Cougars scored four times to increase their lead to 11-3. Roberts had an RBI single, Eller and Stone each hit a sacrifice fly, and the final run of the inning came in as the result of a fielding error. Those four runs proved to be huge when the Maple Leafs put up a tremendous fight in the top of the seventh inning. With the rain coming down as heavily as it had all day, Brown struggled a little with his control as he issued a pair of walks and allowed three singles before being pulled by Veale with one out and the bases loaded and his team up 11-4. Eller came on to pitch for the Cougars and walked in a pair of runs and saw another score on an error as Goshen pulled within 11-7 with just one out and the bases still loaded. Then, Eller got the ground ball he needed when Johnson hit into a game-ending 6-4-3 double play to give MVNU the sweep and a 3-1 series win. Brown picked up the win by tossing 6.1 innings and allowed just six hits, five walks, and seven runs with two strikeouts. Eller came on to finish off the game and he walked two batters before inducing the double play to end it. Moises Ramirez (0-2) started and lasted just two innings as he gave up three hits and four runs. CJ Superczynski worked one innings in relief and allowed three hits and two runs. Ben Diedring tossed two innings and gave up two his, four walks, and four runs with one strikeout. Johnson then closed out the pitching for the Maple Leafs by tossing one inning and giving up one hit and one unearned run. Doherty led the Cougars by going 3-for-4, while Stone and Roberts each had two hits apiece. Meanwhile, Zach Vanlandingham had two hits and scored two runs for Goshen. "We appeared to have this game in control through the first five innings," said Veale. "They got some things started with a lead-off walk. They scored three and then we got a great catch and throw from Kenny in right to end the threat. At the time, we didn't realize it, but the four runs in the bottom of the sixth proved to be crucial. The rain picked up and so did the challenge to close things down. They got the tying run to the plate, and we were fortunate to turn a game-ending double play." "I also need to say a big thanks to all who contributed to our synthetic turf," Veale added. "It was definitely a huge factor in getting the games in today and helping pick up a couple wins." The Cougars will return to action on Tuesday when the team will travel to Indiana Wesleyan University for another MCC doubleheader that will start at 4 p.m.

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