CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Pitt-Johnstown walked it off twice on Saturday, knocking off West Virginia State 6-5 and 5-4 in a nonconference doubleheader at GoMart Ballpark.
The Mountain Cats took the four-game set and moved to 3-1 on the year behind a sacrifice fly from Calvin Iseminger in the opener and an Aaron Smearman single in game two.
Game One
Pitt-Johnstown held a 4-3 lead before letting up a run apiece in the sixth and seventh innings that preceded the late rally.
Brody Roberts led off the seventh with an infield single and moved to second when Nathan Helms laid down a sacrifice bunt and reached on a throwing error. Aidan Steinbugl and Lucas Muffie each drew full-count walks to force home Roberts and tie the game.
That set up Iseminger, who drove a flyball to center field that allowed Smearman, a pinch-runner for Helms, to score and secure the win.
Roberts had two hits and scored twice, while Zac LeGars doubled, tripled and scored a run.
Ben Tomb started and threw three innings, giving up three earned runs on four hits with four strikeouts and five walks. Baron Dionis and Seth Coleman each gave up an earned run in relief. Jacob McCoy picked up the win in relief after getting the last two outs in the seventh.
LeGars tripled and scored on Alex Ebeling's RBI double before Ebeling crossed on a wild pitch to make it 3-2.
Ebeling, who walked to lead off the fifth, tied the game at 3-all after scoring from second base on a throwing error. Roberts, who followed him with a single, gave the Mountain Cats a brief 4-3 advantage when he scored on wild pitch with two outs.
Game Two
Roberts walked with one out to begin the rally in the seventh with the game tied 4-4. LeGars singled and Steinbugl worked a full-count walk to load the bases and tee up Smearman, whose sharp line drive to center field allowed the Mountain Cats to celebrate.
The Mountain Cats recorded just two other hits, both of them coming in the second inning to help tie it at 2-all. Muffie singled, Iseminger walked and Tyler Danko drove in the first run with a single to center. Crusen Stover then lofted a sacrifice fly to bring home Iseminger.
Pitt-Johnstown took advantage of four walks and two errors in the third to notch two runs without a hit. Roberts walked to lead off, moved to second on an error and scored on a deep sacrifice fly by LeGars.
Muffie later walked, advanced all the way to third on an error and a balk and finally scored on a failed pickoff attempt that gave the Mountain Cats a 4-3 lead.
Jared Dowey pitched five innings, surrendering four runs — one earned — on five hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. Riley Roskopf picked up the win after two scoreless innings of relief.
Pending weather, Pitt-Johnstown will open a four-game nonconference series against East Stroudsburg with a doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21.
