April 23, 2008

Box Score

Macon, Ga. - Capitalizing on both a wild pitch and passed ball, sophomore Dylan de Graaf scampered home for the game-winning run as Western Carolina edged the Mercer Bears, 8-7, in 10 innings at Claude Smith Field Wednesday evening.

The Catamounts put two aboard in the first extra frame when freshman Ryan Mathews singled up the middle and de Graaf walked. Two batters and one out later, de Graaf advanced from second to third on a wild pitch by reliever Boone Webster, with a passed ball on reserve catcher, Casey Stuart, allowing go-ahead run to come home.

Mercer put runners at the corners with two outs in the bottom of the tenth, but a ground ball up the first base line was kept fair by senior Barrett Shaft to end the game.

Senior Tyler Sexton tossed the final three innings of hitless, scoreless relief, working around three walks - including a pair of intentional passes - with a strikeout to secure his second win of the season. The High Point, N.C., native pitched around a bases loaded, one-out jam in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings.

Freshman Brandon Johnson surrendered five earned runs in 4.2 innings in his first collegiate start, giving way to juniors Corey Martin and Drew Saberhagen for 2.1 innings before Sexton closed the game out. Martin allowed two hits, two walks with two strikeouts, while Saberhagen fanned three while giving up two earned runs on three base hits.

Shaft led WCU at the plate with a perfect 4-for-4 showing with an RBI. The Lilburn, Ga., native moved into sole possession of second place all-time on Western's career hits chart, moving past former Catamount great, Matt Raleigh, in the process. His classmate Blake Murphy posted the only other multi-hit game finishing 2-for-4 with four runs driven in, including a three-run home run.

Sophomore Nick Liles extended his current hitting streak to 12 games with a single in the third inning, finishing 1-for-6 on the night.

Mercer (18-26) lit the scoreboard first in the home half of the second inning with a two-out solo homer by centerfielder John Dortch. The lead was short-lived, though, as the Catamounts exploded for five runs in the third.

Two singles sandwiched around a Mercer error tied the game at one. Liles singled up the middle with classmate Brent Greer lacing one at Bear third-baseman Nick Dimauro who bobbled it to put two aboard ahead of Shaft, who drove in the game-tying run with a single to right field. The next batter, Murphy, blasted a three-run homer over the fence in left field to push the Catamounts ahead, 4-1. Sophomore Reid Rollison plated the fifth run after reaching on a four-pitch walk, trotting home on a sacrifice fly to center for a 5-1 advantage.

The Bears closed the deficit to two with a three-spot in the home half of the fourth. Designated hitter Joe Winker lifted a one-out, two-run home run, with shortstop Billy Shaughnessy doubling and scoring on a sacrifice fly by Dortch to make it 5-3.

With the game tied at five through five innings, WCU pulled back ahead with two runs in the top of the sixth inning. Greer doubled down the left field line and later scored from third on a Bears wild pitch to make it 6-5. Murphy drove in his fourth run of the game with a single to right field, plating Shaft from second to give the Cats a two-run lead, 7-5.

But Mercer pushed across single runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to knot the game at seven, with Western going in order in the top half of the seventh, eighth and ninth innings. The Bears threatened to end the game in regulation by loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth before Sexton induced a line drive and a foul out to sophomore third baseman, Tyler Kirkpatrick.

Western, which won in the state of Georgia for the first-time this season (1-5), stranded nine runners while the Catamounts forced Mercer to leave 14 on base. The win evened the all-time series at one, avenging last year's, 13-10, loss in Cullowhee.

Western Carolina hosts Furman this weekend in a three-game Southern Conference set at Childress Field/Hennon Stadium beginning Friday evening at 7:00 pm. The series continues with a 6:00 pm first pitch on Saturday and concludes with a 2:00 pm start on Sunday afternoon.