TOPPING WEST LIBERTY

CU ROUTS 'TOPPERS FOR SPRING BREAK VICTORY

Sometimes it's not how you start, it's how you finish. Sometimes, it's the other way around. Other times, it's both.

Concord's Baseball started and finished strongly on Tuesday, rolling to a 14-4 non-conference victory over West Liberty at the Savannah (GA) Invitational.

The Mountain Lions took a 9-2 lead after four innings, and blew the game open with a four-run rally in the 7th. The victory ended a two-game losing streak and improved CU's record to 5-7.

Concord reached WLU starter Michael Reef for two runs in each of the first two innings.

In the 1st, Reef hit leadoff hitter Jacob Mays with a pitch, and Keith Morrisroe singled. Josh Wenger singled to left to drive in Mays, and Kyle Webb singled to right to drive in Morrisroe.
Holding The Runner 314 x 191

In the 2nd, Clay Riggleman reached on a one-out error by 1B Rudy Nagy. Reef again hit Mays with a pitch, and CU pulled off a double steal.
Morrisroe hit into an error by 2B Andrew Henry, and Riggleman scored. Wenger lofted a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Mays and giving Concord a 4-0 lead.

The Hilltoppers replaced Reef with Robbie Stewart in the 3rd inning, to little effect -- the Mountain Lions would score twice more.
Bret Blevins drew a leadoff walk and stole second. One out later, Nick Sydnor reached on an error by new 1B Scott Castilow, and Randy Beard walked to load the bases. Riggleman brought in Blevins with a sacrifice fly to center.
Stewart added to his woes by hitting Mays with a pitch to re-load the bases, then walking Morrisroe to score Sydnor and extend CU's lead to 6-0.

Mays, Concord's starting pitcher, ran into trouble in the bottom of the 3rd. He allowed three straight hits to start the inning, leading to WLU's first run. Later, he threw a two-out wild pitch that brought in another run.

The Mountain Lions answered with a two-out rally in the top of the 4th. Raphael Sanchez singled and stole second, then scored on Sydnor's RBI single. Stewart threw a wild pitch that moved Sydnor to second. Beard walked, and a throwing error by Hilltopper C Collin Miller brought Sydnor into score. Mays doubled to center to score Beard, stretching the Concord lead to 9-2.

West Liberty scored twice in the 5th to move within 9-4.

Raphael Sanchez AB vs Urbana 314 x 231
Concord broke open the game in the 7th. Webb drew a leadoff walk, Blevins singled and Sanchez was hit by a pitch. A passed ball scored Webb, and, one out later, another passed ball brought in Blevins.
Beard tripled to left center to score Sanchez, and an RBI groundout by Riggleman pushed Beard across to lift CU to a 13-4 lead.

CU added one more run in the 9th, when Beard walked and Mays tripled.

May excelled at the plate and on the mound for Concord. Batting, he was 4-4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored. Pitching, he scattered eight hits in eight innings, allowing four earned runs while striking out five.

Morrisroe went 2-6 with two RBIs; Wenger also drove in two.

Up next for Concord is their final game at the Savannah Invitational, a non-conference matchup against Shippensburg University (PA) on Wednesday, March 9. First pitch is scheduled for 10:00 am at Grayson Stadium.
 
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