University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
#vs. George Washington
Spiders End Atlantic 10 Hopes And Season In 10-4 Loss To George Washington
05/28/2005 | Baseball
May 28, 2005
DAYTON, Ohio - Sophomore Michael Parker went 3-for-3 with four RBI and George Washington used a six-run fourth inning to avenge Thursday's defeat to Richmond with a 10-4 win Friday evening in the 2005 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship in Dayton, Ohio.
The Spiders, who made a remarkable run in the Atlantic 10 Championships upending the second and third seeds in the early days of the tournament, end their season with a 22-35 mark. Early glances and predictions indicate Richmond will return as many as all eight position players in 2006 as well as all three of the team's weekend starters.
George Washington scored two in the top half of the first inning on sophomore Michael Parker's two-run single off Richmond senior starter John Cronin. Richmond answered right back with three runs as junior Ben Zeskind and sophomore Anthony Sandstrom hit back-to-back singles to open the inning before scoring on sophomore Matt McKenna's bases-clearing triple.
After senior starter Dan Sullivan kept the Spiders at bay in the second and third innings, GW exploded for six runs in the top half of the fourth inning on four hits and a pair of walks. Third baseman Geoff Milsom smacked a two-run single through the right side of the infield and Parker collected one of his four RBI's before Richmond third baseman McKenna's two-run error gave the Colonials an 8-4 advantage.
GW added runs in the sixth and seventh innings, including designated hitter Bill Simpson's fourth home run to lead off the seventh off sophomore reliever Lee Rattigan.
Sullivan allowed four runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts over six innings to earn his seventh win of the year. Milsom and A-10 Player of the Year Brad Rosenblat collected two hits apiece while senior reliever Nate CasaGrande tossed three innings of scoreless relief.
Cronin (2-4) surrendered seven runs (six earned) on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Zeskind enjoyed a 2-for-3 evening with a pair of walks to finish the year with a .365 average to lead the Spiders (22-35).
The Spiders will now await the MLB Free Agent Draft, June 7-8, to see what roster spots become vacated. Check back at www.RichmondSpiders.com for all the Spider selections as well as comments from the athletes taken in the Major League Draft.
Game Notes
- The Spiders ended their season with a mark of 22-35.
- Junior Ben Zeskind recorded multiple hits for the third time in four games and also extended his season-ending hit streak to six games.
- Sophomore Matt McKenna's drove in three with a triple in the first inning. It was the second-straight game the Richmond, Va., native recorded both a game-tying RBI and a go-ahead RBI in the same contest.
- Senior John Cronin three strike outs helped him surpass the century mark in career punch outs with 103.
- Following the Championships junior Andrew Justice and sophomore Rob Berzinskas were named part of the 2005 Atlantic 10 All-Championship Team.
