March 17, 2001

Box Score

Cullowhee, N.C. - Five Spartans hit home runs, including a grand slam by Chris Cook, as UNC Greensboro (12-9, 6-2 SoCon) defeated Western Carolina (9-13, 3-4 SoCon), 22-5, Saturday afternoon at Hennon Stadium.

UNC Greensboro put five runs on the board, sending 11 men to the plate, in the top of the first. Cook ledoff the game with a single, followed by a Shane Schumaker walk and Nick Lockhart being hit by a pitch to load the bases. A Catamount error allowed one run to score and a ground out by Jesse Martin pushed another run across. Lockhart scored on a wild pitch and Richard Hopp, who had reached on the error, scored on a Justin Lee single. A hit batter, the second of the inning, and two walks made the score 5-0 and chased Catamount starter Seth Foster.

Western Carolina answered with three runs in the bottom of the first and two in the second to tie the game at 5-5. In the first Donovan Minero plated Todd Roper and Alan Beck with a two-out single to left and later scored on a single to right by Ben Rhoney.

Ryan Schade began the second with a walk, followed by Dan Woodley's double to right. Spartan head coach Mike Gaski went to relief pitcher Taft Cable, who immediately surrendered a two-run single to Roper. Cable would then allow a fielder's choice and a walk before getting two ground outs to end the inning.

From that point, Cable (1-0) shut down the WCU attack to pick up his first win of the season. Including the ground outs in the second, he would retire 12 straight Catamounts and 23 of the final 26 batters. Cable's line was 8.0 innings, two hits, no runs, two walks and seven strikeouts.

While Cable was holding Western in check, the Spartan offense continued to produce, scoring runs in the third (two), fourth (three), sixth (seven), seventh (one), eighth (three) and ninth (one) innings. In the third, a walk and a single set the table for a two-run double by Ramon Balderas. In the fourth, Hopp hit the first of UNCG's five homers with a two-run shot to left. Two batters later, Jay Maule hit a solo home run to right-center field for his second of the season.

In the sixth, the Spartans once again sent 11 men to the plate in the seven-run inning, highlighted by Cook's grand slam. Martin ledoff the seventh with his third homer of the season, while Lee, who was 4-for-5 with five RBI and four runs scored, accounted for all three UNCG runs in the eighth with a two-out, three-run blast. The Spartans used a walk, an error and a single by Jason Sarvis to score a run in the ninth and provide the final margin.

Western Carolina's Ryan Basner (1-5) took the loss, allowing four hits, five runs and three walks with two strikeouts in 3.0 innings of work. The Catamounts tied a season-high with four errors, allowing nine unearned runs to cross the plate.

After splitting the first two games in the series, WCU and UNCG will play the rubber match on Sunday. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. at Hennon Stadium.