NORFOLK, Va. - The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (24-31) continued their conference title run in the 2014 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Baseball Championships on Thursday (May 15) at Marty L. Miller Field, routing tournament host Norfolk State (20-25) to advance to the tournament semi-finals.
Just like the opening-round contest versus Maryland Eastern Shore, the Wildcats battled behind a solid pitching performance for the victory, and the offense provided run support early and often to blow the game open in the early going.
Second baseman Matt Noble sparked the Wildcats with a first-pitch double fired down the left field line to lead off the second inning, but Shaun McCarty stepped up to make it a statement inning. The senior shortstop belted a three-run triple deep into right field and then came home on catcher Zach Olszewski’s sacrifice fly to push the Wildcats ahead 4-0.
Noble got the Wildcats started again in the next frame, reaching on a one-out single, ahead of a Jordan Robinson walk. Designated hitter Austin Garcia tacked up another run on an RBI single to left field, while center fielder Eros Modena capped the two-run frame with a sacrifice fly for the 6-0 advantage.
Noble made it three consecutive scoring frames, driving in Olszewski on an RBI fielder’s choice play in the fourth.
Although the Spartans put a score on the board in the top of the sixth with Zach Markel scoring on Ross Cardwell’s RBI groundout, the Wildcats continued to pile it on, scoring a pair in the bottom half on Noble’s sacrifice fly and Modena’s RBI single through the left side. Josh Johnson led off the seventh with a triple to left field and scored on left fielder Jake Welch’s single through the left side, extending the Wildcats’ advantage to 10-1.
Facing reliever John Sever in the eighth, the Spartans trimmed the B-CU lead to eight runs with Andre Moore scoring from third on a catcher’s interference. After Scott Garner closed the eighth, Donte Lindsay downed NSU in order in the ninth to secure the 10-2 win.
B-CU starter Keith Zuniga (7-4) earned the victory with a seven-frame outing, striking out four Spartans while allowing just four hits and one earned run. For the Spartans, Stephen Butt (3-3) took the loss, allowing seven hits and seven earned runs through five innings on the mound.
Noble, McCarty and Modena each batted 2-for-4 in a productive hitting day for the Wildcats. McCarty tallied three RBI and one run, while Noble and Modena each registered two RBI and scored a run. Robinson scored two runs for the Wildcats.
With the victory, the Wildcats earned a third-round bye and will face the winner of the Florida A&M and Savannah State matchup on Saturday (May 17) at 1 p.m. at Marty L. Miller Field.