March 4, 2006

Box Score

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - A four-run first inning helped lift the Richmond Spider baseball squad to a 7-1 win over Yale Saturday afternoon at Pitt Field. The Spiders, 2-7 on the season, jumped out to an early 4-0 lead then tacked on three more over the course of the game showing Yale to a season-opening loss. The Spiders will send junior Rob Berzinskas to the mound in the second of three against the Bulldogs Sunday, first pitch at Pitt Field is set for 1 p.m.

After Richmond starter sophomore Stephen Owens got Yale to strand a runner in the top half of the first, Richmond went to work on the Eli's opening-day starter, Alec Smith. Richmond pounded out four runs on four hits to take a 4-0 lead. Senior Ben Zeskind ledoff the game with a double. After junior Benji Marshall got on by way of a hit by pitch and an ensuing strikeout, sophomore Joe Mahoney was intentionally walked. Freshman Cameron Brown then came to the plate with the bases loaded and one out. The Delmer, N.Y., native made the Bulldogs pay by singling to center, scoring one. Sophomore Alex Hale and junior Alex Wotring followed Brown with consecutive RBI singles before junior Matt McKenna laid down a sac-squeeze bunt to drive in the fourth run of the inning.

Owens moved through the Yale order by not allowing another hit until the fifth. The Sykesville, Md., native, who improved to 1-1 on the year, finished the day by giving up just three hits and striking out four in a season-high seven innings of work.

The Spiders extended the lead in the fourth with a run-scoring single from Marshall, and later added two in the eighth. Marshall was responsible for the first run in the eighth when he reached on an error with the bases loaded. Sophomore Austin Reilly followed by driving in the Spiders' final run of the game on a bases loaded sac-fly to centefield.

Sophomore Brian Alas came on in the eighth in relief of Owens to close out the game. The Port Washington, N.Y., native surrendered Yale's only run and gave up just three hits.

Richmond will be back in action Sunday, March 5, when it takes on Yale in the second of three at Pitt Field. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.

Game Notes:
-- Sophomore Stephen Owens worked a season-high seven inninngs.
-- The Spiders held Yale to an opponent season-low of six hits as well as an opponent season-low in runs scored (1).
-- Junior Andrew Justice played just one complete inning before leaving the game due to illness.
-- Richmond used its ninth different batting order of the season.
-- Junior Benji Marshall played three different positions during the game.
-- Freshman Cameron Brown logged the first go-ahead RBI of his career.
-- Junior Alex Wotring logged his first mult-hit game of the season.
-- Senior Ben Zeskind extended his hit streak to eight games, while freshman Cameron Brown has now hit safely in three-straight.