Michigan State University
West Virginia
Baseball Drops Doubleheader to West Virginia
3/18/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 18, 2000
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State baseball team lost both games of a doubleheader to West Virginia Saturday afternoon in Morgantown, W.V. The Spartans are now 2-12 on the season, while the Mountaineers improve to 7-11.
MSU managed to extend the first game of the doublehader to 10 innings, but eventually lost 6-5.
West Virginia jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a pair of base hits and an MSU error in the bottom of the first. The Spartans closed the gap to 2-1 in the top of the second when centerfielder Bob Malek (Fr., Detroit, Mich.) doubled down the right field line and was singled home by catcher Matt Haynes (So., Midland, Mich.). MSU then knotted the score at 2-2 in the top of the third when Rick Court (Jr., Grosse Pointe, Mich.) plated Charlie Braun (Fr., Grosse Pointe, Mich.).
Michigan State then pulled ahead 3-2 in the top of the fourth when Haynes scored on a grounder by Braun.
The West Virginia bats then remained silent until the bottom of the sixth, when they used a two-out rally consisting of a double and a single to tie the score at three apiece. The Mountaineers then scored one run each in the next two innings to take a 5-3 lead into the ninth.
Sophomore Chris McCuiston (So., Birmingham, Mich.) led off the MSU ninth with a pinch-hit base hit, but was forced out when Troy Bergman (So., Grosse Pointe, Mich.) grounded into a fielders choice. Freshman Brady Burrill and Ted Demetral (Sr., Sterling Heights, Mich.) followed with singles to load the bases. Braun then connected for a single, driving home Bergman and Burrill and tying the score at 5-5. Braun had three RBI's in game one.
West Virginia loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth and could not get the winning run acrss the plate, but three singles and a pair of stolen bases in the bottom of the 10th combined for a run, giving the Mountaineers a 6-5 win.
Josh Axelson (Jr., Brooklyn, Mich.) started and pitched five strong innings for MSU, giving up only five hits and one unearned run while striking out five.
The Spartans also lost a hearbreaker in game two, falling by a 3-2 count. The teams played scoreless baseball through three innings before MSU broke through in the top of the fourth.
Burrill drew a walk and advanced on a grounder by Kevin Crews (So., Hinckley, Ohio), then scored on a single by Demetral to give MSU a 1-0 advantage. Michigan State increased its lead to 2-0 in the top of the fifth when Bob Malek lifted a solo home run, his second of the season, to right field.
Starting pitcher Gary Zsigo (Sr., Lennon, Mich.) then held the Mountaineers scoreless through the end of the eighth inning. Zsigo pitched eight scoreless inning for the Spartans, allowing only four hits and one walk to go with five strikeouts.
West Virginia then scored three unearned runs off MSU reliever Adam White (Jenison, Mich.) in the bottom of the ninth to get the 3-2 win. The Mountaineers got a pair of singles and were the beneficiaries of two MSU errors and a walk in the inning.
MSU and West Virginia play another dobleheader Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m., then the Spartans return to East Lansing for their home opener, a single game against Eastern Michigan on Tuesday, March 21 at 2 p.m.
Score by innings:Game 1 R H EMichigan State 011 100 002 0 - 5 12 2West Virginia 200 001 110 1 - 6 14 0WP-Reeser (1-0), LP-Geswein (0-1), Save-none
Game 2 R H EMichigan State 000 110 000 - 2 9 3West Virginia 000 000 003 - 3 6 1WP-Kirkland (1-0), LP-White (1-1), Save-none
