Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Pitt-Johnstown got complete games from
Derek Younker and
John Fees, and
Nate Negri hit for the cycle to lead the Mountain Cats to a 6-2 and 9-0 Senior Day sweep over Gannon, Saturday evening at Point Stadium. With the sweep, Pitt-Johnstown improved to 20-22 overall and 15-11 in the PSAC West and clinched a spot in next week's PSAC Tournament in Butler.
Pitt-Johnstown, which clinched either the third or fourth seed in the western division, will close out the regular season on Sunday at Gannon, before opening the 2014 PSAC Tournament on Wednesday at Kelly Automotive Park in Butler.
In game one, Pitt-Johnstown jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings and went on to the 6-2 win.
Ernesto Rizzitano reached on a fielding error by Gannon second baseman Taylor Anderson to lead off the bottom of the first and the Mountain Cats took advantage of it. Negri walked and
Jake Warner drove in Rizzitano with a base hit to make it 1-0.
Jake Stern then doubled home Negri, and
Matt McGhee's ground out plated Warner from third to make it 3-0.
Rizzitano then hit an inside the park homerun deep to right field in the second to increase 4-0.
Gannon cut the deficit in half with single runs in the third and fifth innings, but Pitt-Johnstown came right back with two more insurance runs in the bottom of the frame. Rizzitano doubled with one out, and Negri tripled to chase home Rizzitano. Two batters later,
Kyle Morrow singled to right center to score Negri to set the final at 6-2.
Younker pitched out of a pair of bases loaded jams to improve to 7-4 with a complete-game effort. Younker allowed two runs on nine hits. He also fanned one and didn't allow a walk.
Rizzitano finished 2-3 for three with a homer, a double, and three runs. Negri, Warner, Morrow, and Stern all had RBI base hits for the Mountain Cats.
In game two, Fees pitched a complete-game shutout and Negri hit for the cycle in the 9-0 win.
Negri's one-out solo homer over the left-centerfield wall in the bottom of the firststarted his run at the cycle and put the Mountain Cats up 1-0.
Pitt-Johnstown added two more in the third. Negri doubled and Warner drew a four-pitch walk. Morrow followed with an RBI double down the left field line, and Stern's sacrifice fly scored Warner from third.
Single runs in the fourth and fifth innings pushed it out to 5-0, before Pitt-Johnstown tacked on four more in the sixth. In that sixth inning, Negri, who homered, doubled, and tripled, needed a single to hit for the cycle. With two outs, Negri stepped in and promptly lined a single to left to reach finish the cycle.
Negri finished 4-for-4 with an RBI and four runs, while Morrow had two doubles and drove in three.
Dillon Boyer collected two hits, and Stern had two RBI.
Fees improved to 6-5 after shutting out Gannon on just three hits. Fees also struck out seven and walked two.
Between games of the doubleheader, Pitt-Johnstown recognized this year's seniors…pitchers
John Fees,
Rylan Schnably, and
Derek Younker, catcher
Kyle Morrow, first baseman
Matt McGhee, and shortstop
Jake Warner.
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