STATISTICS
Saturday, March 16 Results:
| Tulane 10, UC Riverside 1 |
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| UConn 17, Michigan State 4 |
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| Cincinnati 5, Niagara 0 |
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| No. 14 ECU 2, Maryland 1 |
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| Rhode Island 13, Wichita State 8 |
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| Houston 2, Dallas Baptist 1 |
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| Memphis 10, UNCW 8 |
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| UConn 9, Michigan State 3 |
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| Rhode Island 6, Wichita State 1 |
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| VCU 4, UCF 3 |
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| USF 16, Dartmouth 1 |
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| UC Riverside 10, Tulane 1 |
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Highlights:
It was an 8-4 day for American Athletic Conference baseball teams, as four teams (UConn, ECU, Houston and USF) clinched a series. The American’s teams combined to outscore its Saturday opponents 84-52. All nine teams are back in action Sunday, which features four rubber matches.
Tulane 10, UC Riverside 1 | UC Riverside 10, Tulane 1
Tulane split its doubleheader against UC Riverside, winning the first game 10-1 before falling in Game 2 by the same score. The Green Wave scored five runs in the bottom of the second inning and scored in the next three frames to begin the day. Tulane belted 12 hits in the win, including hitting four home runs and six doubles, with seven different players earning hits and four earning multiple hits. Trevor Jensen hit two of the team's four home runs in the game, driving in four and scoring twice, while Kody Hoese hit his 10th of the year in a 3-for-3 afternoon with two runs scored. Starter Kaleb Roper earned the win by limiting the Highlanders to a run on five hits, striking out five and walking four in 6.2 innings of work.
The Highlanders answered in the second game of the day, tallying 10 runs in four innings. The contests stayed locked at 0-0 until UC Riverside broke the tie with one run in the fourth inning, following with four runs in two of the next three innings. Acy Owen drove in Tulane's only run of the day on an RBI single in the seventh. Tulane will close out the series against UC Riverside Sunday.
UConn 17, Michigan State 4 | UConn 9, Michigan State 3
UConn outscored Michigan State, 26-7, to capture a doubleheader sweep and clinch a series win against the Spartans in Greenville, S.C. The Huskies scored a season-high 17 runs to capture the first game of the doubleheader on a season-high 13 hits. UConn got off to a quick start with a six-run first inning with all of the runs coming with two outs. Chris Winkel recorded his second three-hit game of the season by collecting a pair of doubles and tied his career-high with four RBIs.
UConn earned the doubleheader sweep behind solid pitching from starter Kenny Haus. The right-hander logged five innings of work and earned his first career win with the Huskies. The Huskies put the game away in the eighth inning with a four-run frame. Pat Winkel bounced a two-run single into centerfield and Christian Fedko followed with his third home run of the season, a two-run shot to left field. Anthony Prato has reached in all 16 games this season and has reached in 22-straight dating back to last season. The UConn bullpen totaled 7.0 scoreless frames in the twin bill. The series finale is set for Sunday at Noon.
Cincinnati 5, Niagara 0
Cincinnati’s duo of Nathan Kroger and Korren Thompson shutout Niagara and allowed just two hits as the Bearcats won the game 5-0. Kroger made the start, pitching 7.0 innings with two hits and one walk. He matched his career-high in strikeouts with eight. Thompson threw the final two frames with no hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Both teams combined for six hits in the game. A.J. Bumpass and Eric Santiago both had doubles for the Bearcats with Bumpass driving in two runs. The rubber match will be played at Noon Sunday.
No. 14 ECU 2, Maryland 1
Tyler Smith allowed one run over six innings, while Alec Burleson collected a pair of hits helping No. 14 ECU to a 2-1 series win over Maryland. ECU scored two runs in the second inning taking an early 2-0 lead on a pair of RBI singles from Brady Lloyd and Dusty Baker. Burleson picked up his 10th multi-hit effort of the season. Smith (2-0) earned the win allowing just one run (earned) on three hits with a pair of strikeouts and two walks in a season-high six innings. Burleson notched his first save of the year tossing three scoreless frames of relief where he issued two walks and fanned three. The Pirates have scored nine two-out runs in the series against the Terrapins. ECU will look for a road series sweep when it returns to the diamond Sunday.
Rhode Island 13, Wichita State 8 | Rhode Island 6, Wichita State 1
Wichita State dropped a doubleheader to Rhode Island at Eck Stadium. The Shockers fell in Game 1, 13-8, before losing the nightcap, 6-1. The Shockers and Rams are scheduled to conclude the four-game series with a contest at Noon ET Sunday. In the first game of the doubleheader, Paxton Wallace led Wichita State at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a double and solo homer. Jordan Boyer added three hits in five at-bats. In the second game, Hunter Gibson went 2-for-4 with a double, and Luke Ritter hit his third homer of the season.
Houston 2, Dallas Baptist 1
Hits were locked at 4-4, as Houston tacked on a run in the eighth and ninth innings to clinch its series against Dallas Baptist, 2-0. Center fielder Grayson Padgett used a bunt to bring in the first run of the game before Jared Triolo hit a leadoff solo home run in the ninth. Triolo also had a double on the night. The Cougars go for the series sweep Sunday.
Memphis 10, UNCW 8
Memphis outlasted UNCW, 10-8, to even the series at 1-1. Saturday's win sets up a Sunday rubber match between the Tigers and Seahawks. The game featured five lead changes, as Memphis scored in its final six innings to negate an early deficit and post its seventh win in nine outings. Six Tigers turned in multi-hit efforts, including the top five hitters in the lineup. Senior Colton Neel, who recorded a 2-for-4 day at the plate with an RBI, took the hill in the ninth and notched his third save of the season. Neel connected on the game-winning double for a 9-8 Tiger lead in the eighth inning. Hunter Goodman and Alex Trela each had two hits and drove in a pair of runs.
VCU 4, UCF 3
Despite a solid outing from starter Grant Schuermann, UCF dropped Game 2 of its weekend series against VCU at John Euliano Park, 4-3. Schuermann took a no decision, despite throwing seven innings of one-run baseball. The southpaw struck out six, finishing one short of his season high. The rubber match is set for a Noon ET first pitch Sunday. Tyler Osik is on a six-game hitting streak and a 17-game on-base streak.
USF 16, Dartmouth 1
USF erupted for 16 runs on 14 hits to clinch the weekend series against Dartmouth with Saturday's 16-1 victory. The Bulls scored in each of the first three innings to lead 6-0 heading into the fourth and rallied for eight runs in the seventh. USF’s hits and runs are each season highs. The Bulls have reached double-digit hits 10 times this season. Jordan Santos had three RBIs and two runs, adding his 18th walk of the year. Austin Bodrato had two hits for the fourth time this week. He drove in four and scored twice. Nick Gonzalez, Garrett Zech and Tyler Dietrich all had two hits. The Bulls will go for the three-game series sweep Sunday at Noon ET.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
Sunday, March 17
Michigan State vs. UConn - Noon
Dartmouth at USF – Noon
VCU at UCF – Noon
Niagara at Cincinnati - Noon
UNCW at Memphis - 1 p.m.
Rhode Island at Wichita State - 1 p.m. (Cox)
ECU at Maryland - 1 p.m.
Houston at Dallas Baptist - 2 p.m.
UC Riverside at Tulane - 2 p.m.
All times Eastern and subject to change