Cougars Clinch MCC Tournament Berth with Split


	Cougar Baseball Recap Cougars Clinch MCC Tournament Berth with Split written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game 1 Boxscore \| Game 2 Boxscore FORT WAYNE, Ind. (4-24-2012) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University baseball team clinched a berth in the upcoming five-team Mid-Central College Conference Tournament as the Cougars split a conference doubleheader at the University of Saint Francis (Ind.) on Tuesday after as MVNU won the opener 7-0 and dropped the nightcap 4-3. In the first game, MVNU (28-18, 19-13 MCC) took a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning as junior shortstop Jordan Doherty and freshman catcher Clint Spencer both had RBI singles in the inning and sophomore outfielder Robert Kane added a sacrifice fly. The lead grew to 7-0 for the Cougars in the top of the third inning as freshman second baseman Sterling Harpst had a two-run single and Kane and sophomore outfielder Sean Fleming both added another RBI single each. The seven runs were more than enough run support for MVNU senior right-hander Kyle Barr *(left)*, who improved to 7-2 with a 1.79 ERA as he notched his third shutout of the year. Barr allowed just six hits and one walk over seven innings while striking out 10 batters. Barr moves into a tie for sixth place on the Cougars' career win list with former MVNU standout Marty McLeary as he has now won 26 career games. He also ranks third in school history in career strikeouts (274), sixth in career innings pitched (274.2), and third in career shutouts (8). Trevor Pulver (4-7) took the loss for Saint Francis as he gave up 15 hits, one walk, and seven runs over six innings with three strikeouts. Tyler Painter worked the final inning and allowed just one hit along with one strikeout. Kane led MVNU by going 4-for-4, while Dickerson and Doherty had three hits apiece. Fleming and Harpst also registered two hits each. However, the victory was costly as both senior first baseman Josh Roberts and freshman infielder/outfielder/pitcher Kenny McCambridge suffered leg injuries during their respective at bats in the top of the first inning. "The day started out as a real downer," said MVNU coach Keith Veale. "In the first half inning, two of our first three hitters go down in pain after they hit first base - Kenny with a hamstring and Josh with a knee. It sort of cast a dark shadow to start the day." "Kyle's a great guy to have on the mound to handle adversity and he really responded," Veale said. "Our offense got rolling and did a much better job today, staying on top of the ball. The wind was blowing in stiff, and I liked our effort at the plate." Saint Francis (30-21, 24-8 MCC) struck first in the second game as the host Cougars plated an unearned run to go on top 1-0. The score remained that way until the top of the fourth inning when Doherty knotted the game at 1-1 with a two-out single to centerfield. Saint Francis responded with a single run in both the bottom of the fourth and the bottom of the fifth innings as they regained the lead 3-1. Both runs were unearned as the result of three combined errors. MVNU battled back to tie the game at 3-3 in the top of the seventh inning. Harpst drove in the first run with a single to rightfield with one out. Fleming added a two-out single with Barr sliding in just ahead of the tag on a throw to the plate. However, in the bottom of the seventh inning, Saint Francis earned a walk-off win with a two-out single to right center by Ben Martin as the host Cougars prevailed 4-3. Junior lefty Justin Brown (6-4) took the tough loss as he worked 6.2 innings and scattered 10 hits and five walks with just four runs allowed and only one of them earned. He also struck out three batters. Wesley Hunsucker (8-3) earned the victory for Saint Francis as he gave up just six hits, one walk, and three runs over seven innings with three strikeouts. Offensively, Dickerson was one of six MVNU players to register a hit and he doubled. Meanwhile, Derek Coverstone, Tyler Gregory, and Dan Beer each collected two hits apiece for Saint Francis. "This game was won (or should I say lost) on defense," said Veale. "We were so sloppy on defense that it was amazing that we were even in the game. Justin did a nice job of staying focused in spite of our breakdowns defensively. Our guys did put together a nice rally in the seventh inning, but in the end it was our poor defense that cost us the game." "On the day, we managed to stay competitive in spite of our injuries early," Veale added. "We were so banged up that Kyle had to hit for himself in the first game after not having an at bat all year. We also used pitchers to run bases in game two, and we almost pulled it out. We were a pretty resilient team today. It was a gritty performance." Despite the loss in the second game, MVNU has now qualified for the five-team MCC Tournament that will begin on May 2 at Taylor (Ind.) University most likely. The Cougars are right in the mix for the No. 3 seed in the double elimination event. MVNU will return to action on Thursday at 2 p.m. when the Cougars will host Grace (Ind.) College in the final regular-season home games. In between games of that MCC doubleheader, MVNU will honor the seniors on this year's team.

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