The West Chester University Golden Rams baseball team has their backs against the wall following their extra innings loss to the University of Tampa Spartans Thursday evening. The Golden Rams fought back from a 4-0 deficit to tie the game up in the sixth inning to eventually force extra innings.
“That is a tough loss after another hard-fought game,” said West Chester head coach Mike LaRosa. “These guys competed their butts off with a great comeback after going down 4-0 and put us in a position to win it late, but it’s going to be a competitive series all weekend, and we all feel like we are far from out of it.”
Following three scoreless frames where both programs failed to plate runners in scoring position, Tampa took the lead in the top of the fourth. Brayden Woodburn led off the inning with a single into shallow center field. Jhoander Irigoyen then followed up with a grounder to the shortstop Landon Rozich. Rozich bobbled the ball on the play, preventing a potential double play and allowing two runners on base for Tampa.
Two outs later and both runners were in scoring position for the Spartans. Gunnett Carlson slipped a single up the middle, scoring both runners to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead.
The fifth inning began with another leadoff single, this time by Jack Martinez, into left field for the Spartans. After a sacrifice bunt moved Martinez into scoring position, Woodburn batted him in on a single into left center field.
Iriogoyen followed Woodburn up with a single of his own before Jake Books batted Woodburn in on a double down the right field line, giving the Spartans a 4-0 advantage over the Golden Rams.
Down by four, the most important thing for West Chester going into the bottom of the fifth was to start turning the tide of momentum. Three batters later, it was a whole new ball game.
With a 3-1 count, Carter Rust connected on a leadoff home run into straightaway center field to break the ice for West Chester. The home run was his ninth of the season, going 425 feet and ricochetting off of the batter’s eye.
Next up, Caleb Strawhecker worked his way to a full-count walk, putting a runner on base for Austin Stalker. Stalker then laced a line drive down the right-field line, cutting just left of the foul pole for a two-run home run.
The Rams proceeded to tie the ballgame up in the bottom of the sixth. Harry Middlebrooks reached base on a single into left center field before Rozich tripled into center field. The line drive bounced off the center field wall, just behind a diving Jordan Evans in center field for the Spartans.
Middlebrooks scored on the play, beating the throw in from center field to tie the game up at 4-4.
West Chester ace Julian Costa wrapped up his day following the sixth inning. Exiting with a clean no-decision, Costa allowed four runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk on the day. On his way to 104 pitches, he struck out six Tampa batters.
With Costa’s tab closed, West Chester turned to Drew Simpson to take the ball moving forward in the seventh inning.
Simpson, along with his counterpart from Tampa in Luke Fikar, a two-way player who started the game at second base, kept the bases clear for the final three frames of regulation.
With two outs in the top of the ninth, Evans walked to reach base for Tampa. Woodburn, who had already knocked a pair of hits on the day, slung a line drive tailing away in right-center field.
Rust made a diving catch to end the inning. The catch, worthy of a shoutout on SportsCenter, saved the go-ahead run for West Chester.
Following a quiet bottom of the ninth, a round of free baseball was in order to determine the victory of Game One.
Simpson remained on the mound for West Chester as Irigoyen stepped to the plate for Tampa. Irigoyen popped up just inches into the outfield grass behind shortstop. Rozich, West Chester’s freshman shortstop, lost the ball last-second in the bright lights of the USA Baseball National Training Complex, granting Irigoyen a lead-off single.
Following a walk to Books, Golden Rams head coach Mike LaRosa opted for a pitching change, moving two-way shortstop Rozich onto the mound for the remainder of the 10th inning.
With two runners on, Walker Vanecek tapped a bunt down the first base line to move the runners up. Stalker, at first for West Chester, charged the play, attempting to get the lead runner, Irigoyen, at third. Irigoyen beat the throw, loading the bases for Tampa on a fielder’s choice bunt.
Pinch hitter Nik Pereira scored Irigoyen on a single into left field before Jesse Ponce scored Books and Vanecek on a double into right-center field. Rozich then worked his way out of the inning on three straight outs, but not before Tampa took a three-run advantage.
A lead-off hit-by-pitch to start the bottom of the 10th was nullified by a game-ending double play as Tampa defeated West Chester 7-4 in Game One.
With the loss, West Chester stands one loss away from elimination. Tampa, meanwhile, is one win away from being the first baseball program in NCAA Division II history to win three consecutive national championships.
“This team is never out of it by any stretch,” commented LaRosa Thursday night. “We talked after the game that coming out, competing tomorrow, and getting a win resets everything and gets us right back to where we want to be heading into Saturday.”
LaRosa is projected to hand the ball to senior right-hander Kyle Lazer to start Game Two for the Golden Rams.
The first pitch for the must-win game against the Spartans is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Should the Rams tie the series up, Game Three would begin on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. Fans can follow along online at NCAA.com.
