March 21, 2008
Box Score
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Saint Louis fell 11-6 at Charlotte in its Atlantic 10 Conference baseball opener on Friday night at Robert and Mariam Hayes Stadium. The Billikens led 4-2 through four innings, but the 49ers plated nine unanswered runs in the next three to take command.
The loss for the Billikens, just their second in the last seven outings, puts them at 8-9 overall and 0-1 in the league. Charlotte, last season's A-10 Tournament champions, improve to 15-2 overall and 1-0 in the A-10.
Saint Louis pushed across a pair of runs in the first to take an early lead. Sophomore J.D. Dunn (Franklin, Tenn./Centennial) stroked a double to lead off the game. After junior Tom Pinnell (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) was hit by a pitch, senior first baseman Greg Rodgers (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell) singled in Dunn to put the Bills up 1-0. Sophomore Mike Beal (St. Louis, Mo./SLUH) was hit by a pitch, and sophomore Andrew Guerra (Dallas, Texas/Rice) reached on an error that scored Pinnell. However, those two tallies are all the Billikens could muster despite having the bases loaded with none out in the inning.
The 49ers scored a run in their half of the first and second, but the Billikens quickly reclaimed the lead with a run in the third inning. Beal walked, and sophomore David Blackwell took his spot on the base paths on a fielder's choice. Senior Casey Moore (Lake St. Louis, Mo./Holt) ended up driving in Blackwell with a single to make it 3-2 Billikens.
A two-out rally in the fourth put the Billikens up 4-2. Pinnell singled down the left-field line, and was in scoring position after stealing second. Rodgers then singled through the left side for his second RBI of the game.
Charlotte sliced into the deficit with a run in the fifth on a Chris Taylor RBI double. The 49ers took the lead for the first time in the sixth when singled in a run and later scored on a wild pitch.
The 49ers' big inning came in the seventh. The bullpen relieved SLU starter Zach Outman (St. Louis, Mo./Lindbergh) prior to the inning, and would go on to walk five and throw three wild pitches in the frame. As a result, Charlotte plated six runs on three hits. Freshman Chaz Salembier came on and got the final out of the inning with the bases loaded.
The Billikens tried to come back in the eighth. Moore doubled to start the inning, and circled the bases on a Brandon Parsons home run over the left-center field fence. But the Billikens would strand a pair of runners in the eighth and were retired in order in the ninth for the 11-6 final.
Outman was tagged with the loss after going six innings and allowing five runs (two earned) on eight hits. He struck out five and walked three. For Charlotte, Joe Yermal was the winner after yielding four runs (two earned) in six innings of work.
Dunn, Rodgers and Moore had two hits each for SLU, while Pinnell went 1-for-3 with two runs scored.
Saint Louis and Charlotte continue the three-game weekend set tomorrow. First pitch in Charlotte is slated for 1 p.m.
