Lions Subdue Pirates

By David Furones

Special to CollegeBaseballInsider.com

 

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – It’s already an improvement from last year for Columbia, and the Lions are in position to do even more damage.

 

After Columbia went a quick two-and-out with the same seed in the same Regional last season, following another Ivy League championship, the Lions won their opener this time around.

 

Starting play with a leadoff home run and jolting to its decisive lead behind a five-run sixth inning, No. 3-seed Columbia won Game 1 of the Coral Gables Regional 6-3 over second-seeded East Carolina for the program’s second NCAA Tournament victory on Friday afternoon at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.

 

“The confidence level is real high for our team,” Columbia coach Brett Boretti said. “There’s a belief that we can be successful this weekend.”

 

Added Jordan Serena, who hit the leadoff home run that sparked energy into the Lions: “I came into today fully expecting to win, so it’s not a huge rush of emotion for me. I think I speak for the rest of the team when I say that.”

 

The Lions (32-15) advance to face the winner of the Miami-FIU nightcap while the Pirates (40-21) drop into the losers’ bracket where they will face the loser between the Hurricanes and Panthers in an elimination game.

 

George Thanopoulos (6-5) earned the win with 5.2 innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits while striking out six.

 

Adam Cline shut down ECU for the final 3.1 innings, striking out three and earning a save. He stranded the bases loaded in the key bottom of the sixth and finished the ball game with a strikeout of Luke Lowery.

 

ECU, champion of the American and returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012, stranded two runners three times on top of leaving the bases loaded in the sixth.

 

Holding Columbia to one run through the first five innings, East Carolina went through four pitchers in Columbia’s five-run sixth. Coupled with some wild pitching from the quartet of ECU hurlers and an inopportune error, the Lions produced their runs in the game-changing inning with just two hits.

 

“Throughout the year, whenever we’ve gotten down, I’ve never doubted our guys,” Thanopoulos said. “We’re extremely resilient. We respond to adversity well, and I had no doubt the offense was going to come back.”

 

With ECU up 3-1, Gus Craig scored from third on a wild pitch to bring Columbia within one. The Pirates had a chance at an inning-ending double play, but second baseman Charlie Yorgen threw wide of first allowing the tying and go-ahead runs to score. Joey Falcone, who went 2 for 5, then drove in two more with a bloop double to shallow left just out of the reach of Lowery.

 

“I did think I was going to get out of that inning because I trust [shortstop] Hunter Allen and Charlie Yorgen,” said pitcher Joe Ingle, who induced the grounder that could have ended the frame. “Someone said something about the runner slid in with his hands up and tried to come at him out of the base line. I think that’s what messed him up – I don’t know.”

 

East Carolina had an opportunity to respond in the bottom of the frame when it left the bases loaded.

 

“We didn’t play well. We didn’t hit good, we didn’t pitch good, we didn’t play good defense,” East Carolina coach Cliff Godwin said. “I told them before the game if you don’t play well, you don’t win at this time of year, and we wouldn’t have beaten anybody today.

 

“We definitely didn’t handle playing in a Regional well early. We hadn’t been in a Regional for three years … All these guys haven’t played in a Regional before. You hope they’re prepared for postseason baseball, but we played a little bit tentative.”

 

Columbia first baseman Nick Maguire redeemed himself after two errors earlier with a diving stop and toss to first for the final out of the sixth, saving two runs.

 

“That’s the play of the game – bases loaded to be able to do that,” Boretti said.

 

After being held scoreless through three innings by Thanopoulos, East Carolina broke through with three runs in the fourth – and only needed one hit to get them.

 

An Eric Tyler two-out, two-run single scored Reid Love and Lowery, who reached on a hit-by-pitch and a walk, respectively. Bryce Harman then scored on one of Maguire’s errors, who committed two errors on mishandled choppers after committing just one error all season.

 

Serena led off the Regional with a home run on a 3-2 pitch that hit against the scoreboard beyond the left-field wall.

 

“I’ve never started off a game with a home run,” Serena said. “That was exciting. Pretty good at-bat. He left a changeup up with a full count, just got the bat to it.”

 

The Lions continued to hit ECU starter Evan Kruczynski hard early on but stranded two runners in both the second and third inning. Kruczynski’s pitch count got up and he left after 5.1 with three runs to his record.

 

Game Notes

·    Senior DH Reid Love, who will get the start on Saturday, was hit by a pitch in the fourth inning on Friday. He remained in the game, but it’s something to look out for to see if it affects his pitching as the delivery struck the left-hander on the wrist of his throwing arm. Godwin said Love should be fine and that all other pitchers will be available for Saturday’s elimination game.

·    Boretti on using just two pitchers to get the first win: “It’s crucial. It keeps things in line for the plan that we have moving forward.”

·    Boretti said he will start junior right-hander Kevin Roy (6-3, 2.66 ERA) on Saturday.