University of Louisville
EAST CAROLINA *
Pirates Sink Cards 11-6 Sunday
April 17, 2005 | Baseball
April 17, 2005
LOUISVILLE, KY - Defending Conference USA champion East Carolina scored runs in every inning but the seventh en route to an 11-6 win over the University of Louisville Sunday to complete a series sweep at Jim Patterson Stadium.
The Pirates gained a 2-0 lead in the first on RBI singles by Adam Witter and Ryan Piesel.
Louisville (17-15, 7-7 C-USA) knotted the game two in the bottom of the inning. Boomer Whiting singled, and Nick Haley followed by reaching on an error when bunting Whiting to second. With two out, Isaiah Howes singled home Whiting and an RBI groundout by Curt Stewart plated Haley.
Brian Cavanaugh's sacrifice fly to left made it 3-2 Pirates(21-13, 7-8 C-USA) in the second, but the Cards took their first lead of the series in the bottom of the frame.
Greg Taylor drew a leadoff walk and Derrick Alfonso moved him to second with a sac bunt before Chris Cates singled him home. Singles by Whiting and Haley loaded the bases for J.T. LaFountain, whose sac fly to left gave U of L a 4-3 lead.
Harrison Eldridge's two-run double in the third made it 5-4, and a two-run home run by Witter in the fourth made it 7-4 ECU.
RBI singles by Eldridge in the fifth and Drew Costanzo in the sixth extended the advantage to 9-4 before LaFountain's RBI single in the seventh scored Whiting, cutting the lead to four.
A Witter sac fly in the eighth put the Pirates up 10-5, but Ryan McKinnon answered with his second home run of the season on a 2-0 pitch to open the Cardinal eighth, finding the berm in left and making it 10-6.
ECU's Ryan Piesel completed his 4 for 4 afternoon with a solo shot of his own on the first pitch of the ninth to close the scoring.
Neither starter figured into the decision as ECU's P.J. Connelly lasted just an inning and a third, while Mike Lynn gave up three runs on five hits in an inning plus.
Mike Flye(5-3) picked up the win, twirling 6.1 innings and scattering six hits and four walks that lead to two runs - one earned. He struck out eight. Chris Powell tossed the final 1.1 innings, allowing a hit.
Sophomore Trystan Magnuson (2-4) took the loss, giving up four runs on five hits in 3.0 innings, striking out three. Brian Halford went the final five, allowing four runs on eight hits and three walks. He struck out four in his longest outing of the season.
The attendance for the three games over the weekend at Jim Patterson Stadium was 5,532 - a new series record at Louisville.
The Cardinals will travel to Cincinnati to face Xavier on Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. in a midweek matchup before moving on to St. Louis where the Cards and Billikens will square off for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday.
