University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
Massachusetts
Richmond Drops Series Finale To UMass
03/22/2009 | Baseball
March 22, 2009
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND - Visiting Massachusetts opened a 9-0 lead after four innings and held on to beat Richmond, 24-9, at Pitt Field and avoided the weekend sweep by the Spiders. Freshmen Matt Zink and Phil Ruzbarsky combined for five hits and four RBI for Richmond, which slipped to 11-5, 2-1.
Zink, who launched a grand slam in Saturday's game, stayed hot with a three-for-five day that included a triple, two RBI and two runs. Ruzbarsky added two hits, two RBI, a double and a run.
Richmond pounded out nine runs on 15 hits, but it was too little, too late after the Minutemen's early-game onslaught. UMass plated a run in the first and second innings, and a five-run third blew the game open.
Sam Boone's bases-clearing three-RBI double in the third was the final blow for starter Ian Marshall, who allowed seven runs (just three earned) and six hits in 2.2 innings of work. Richmond committed three costly errors that opened the flood gates for 12 unearned runs.
Boone finished with four hits, four runs and four RBI, while Mike Donato added five hits and four RBI for UMass (5-9, 1-2), which stretched the lead to 9-0 in the fourth.
Cameron Brown ripped an RBI single to put Richmond on the board in the fifth and Mike Mergenthaler followed with a two-run single, but the Minutemen batted around in the sixth and scored nine times (eight were unearned) to ice it.
After the team's played a 14-inning marathon on Friday and a 13-inning thriller on Saturday, UMass and starter Mike DiCato left little in doubt Sunday. He went six innings with nine hits and six strikeouts to improve his record to 2-2.
Richmond returns to action Tuesday night at VMI, looking to take the season-series from the Keydets. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. in Lexington, Va. The Spiders won 10-4 on Feb. 25 at Pitt Field.
