Concord Eliminates Shepherd, 5-1

Box Score

Game Highlights

BECKLEY, W. Va. – With the Concord University baseball team's 2014 season in jeopardy and facing the Mountain East Conference Tournament's top seeded team, sophomore pitcher Chris Kelly delivered a complete game, one-run performance to help the Mountain Lions defeat Shepherd University, 5-1, Saturday at Epling Stadium in Beckley, W. Va.
 
With the win, Concord (38-15) moves on to face West Virginia State at 7:00 p.m. The loss eliminates Shepherd from the MEC Tournament.
 
Kelly, who improved to 8-3 on the year with the victory, gave up just two hits over the first four innings and allowed only five Ram runners into scoring position through the entirety of a game in which the Grundy, Va. native also struck out a pair of batters.
 
Senior first baseman Joey Miller (2-for-5) and senior catcher Brandon Costa (2-for-3) accounted for two of the game's three multi-hit performances with Miller producing two runs, a double, one RBI and his 13^th home run of the season.  
 
While Kelly kept the Shepherd's offense in check, the Concord bats got to Rams starter Ryan Pansch for one run in the third inning when senior catcher Brandon Costa, who reached base earlier in the frame on a single, scored from third base on a throwing error by Pansch.
 
The Mountain Lions added two more runs in the following inning via an RBI-double by sophomore shortstop Brad Sullivan and a run-scoring single from Costa to make it a 3-0 Concord lead.
 
With two outs in the fifth inning, sophomore designated hitter Joe Camp pushed CU's lead to 4-0 on a single down the right field line that plated Miller, who narrowly missed a home run on a long double earlier in the inning.
 
Shepherd would finally get to Kelly for one run in the bottom of the fifth, but Miller put any thoughts of a Rams comeback to rest when he launched a solo home run in the seventh inning to put Concord's lead back to four runs at 5-1.
 
Kelly allowed hits in seventh, eighth and ninth but the Rams never seriously threatened Concord as the Mountain Lions cruised to the win and ended Shepherd's hope for a tournament title.
 
Senior outfielder Bret Blevins moved to within one hit of tying the Concord record for career hits, currently held by Donovan Huffer, after going 1-for-4 for his 275^th collegiate hit.
 
The game was briefly interrupted in the top of the seventh inning with a 46-minute rain delay.