Mountain Cats' Season Ends With Loss to WV State

05/14/2011

Zach Martin (Irwin, Pa.) had two hits, including a solo homerun, but West Virginia State University built a 7-2 lead after six innings and went on end the Mountain Cats' season with a 7-3 victory in Saturday's third round of pool play at the WVIAC Baseball Tournament in Beckley, W.Va. Pitt-Johnstown finished with a 22-25 overall record.
West Virginia State advances to play Concord (WV) University in Sunday's title game.
The Mountain Cats got on the board with a run in the top of the first. Nick Barbera (Harrisburg, Pa.) and Zach Vignero (Johnstown, Pa.) had back-to-back base hits to lead off the game, before Barbera scored on Martin's one-out sacrifice fly to center.
West Virginia State loaded the bases in the bottom of the first and tied it with an unearned run on Andrew Pickering's RBI single to left that plated Jeremy Fisher.
The Yellow Jackets sent nine men to the plate and added three more runs in the third. Pickering doubled with two outs and scored Billy Smith's single to right. After two straight infield singles, Robert Hawkins followed with a two-RBI single to make it 4-1.
Martin lead off the fourth for Pitt-Johnstown with a homer to right to cut it to 4-2.
However, Pickering struck again for West Virginia State in the bottom of the sixth. His third hit and second double of the day drove in two more, before he scored on a wild pitch to build the Yellow Jackets' lead to 7-2.
Pitt-Johnstown scratched out a run in the seventh. Kyle Morrow (McVeytown, Pa.) doubled and Josh Campanella (Allison Park, Pa.) had an infield single...then the rains came. After a 3-hour and 13-minute rain delay, play resumed, and Andy Rubal (Johnstown, Pa.) singled through the right side to score Morrow and cut the deficit to 7-3.
Martin went 2-for-3 with a solo homer and two RBI. Drew Shaulis (Somerset, Pa.) had two hits and Rubal added a hit and and RBI.
Alex Naggy (Greensburg, Pa.) started for Pitt-Johnstown and allowed four runs on 10 hits in 4.1 innings. Naggy, who dropped to 3-3, struck out two and walked four. Jon Moore (Leechburg, Pa.) pitched the final 3.2 innings and surrendered three runs on four hits.
Pickering had four hits in five at-bats and drove in three, and Hawkins had two hits and a pair of RBI for the Yellow Jackets.

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