University of Louisville
Ohio State
Cards Win Wild One 13-12 at Ohio State
April 17, 2008 | Baseball
April 16, 2008
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Sparked by back-to-back-to-back home runs in the fourth by Justin McClanahan, Chris Dominguez and Andrew Clark, the University of Louisville baseball team out-lasted Ohio State 13-12 in a slugfest Wednesday at Bill Davis Stadium.
The Cardinal trio combined to go 10 for 17 with seven RBI and eight runs in Louisville's first-ever trip to Columbus.
Junior John Dao previewed the high-scoring affair when he opened the game by crushing a 1-0 pitch from OSU starter Andrew Armstrong for a 1-0 Cardinal lead.
An out later McClanahan blistered a double to the alley in left and scored on an RBI single by Clark for a short-lived 2-0 lead in the first.
The Buckeyes (18-12) struck for five in the bottom of the inning on six hits and a Cardinal error, chasing Cardinal starter James Belanger. The big blow was a two-run double by Brian DeLucia.
Reliever Gabriel Shaw, who earned the win to improve to 2-3 on the season, retired the final two batters of the first and went on to toss 4.0 innings, allowing two runs on five hits, fanning two.
Louisville (20-14) got two back in the third after a two-base error allowed Dominguez to reach with one out and scored on a single by Clark. Jeff Arnold then singled and after a wild pitch nudged the runners up a station, Tyler Mickits RBI groundout cut the lead to a single run.
In the Louisville fourth, Drew Haynes hit a leadoff single, and two outs later McClanahan belted an opposite field shot off the scoreboard in right to put the Cards on top for good 6-5.
The next pitch, Dominguez hammered off the fence that borders the football practice field beyond the outfield wall in left for his 12th home run of the season, a titanic blast that put the Cards up 7-5. It was the first time since April 5, 2007 that two Cardinals hit consecutive jacks. In that win over Marshall, it was Logan Johnson and McClanahan turning the trick.
Clark then followed and worked the count to 1-2 before smoking a shot out to right for an 8-5 advantage, and a third consecutive home run.
Mickits doubled to left center to open the fifth and moved to third on a sac bunt by Kyle Cheesebrough, before Haynes' squeeze bunt brought Mickits home for a 9-5 lead.
A two-run home run by Justin Miller in the Buckeye fifth trimmed the advantage to 9-7, but the Cards kept the pressure on with two more in the sixth.
McClanahan hit his team-leading 13th double and moved to third on a base hit by Dominguez. Clark singled home his fourth run of the game on his career-best fourth hit, and a Mickits sac fly regained the four-run lead.
The pesky Buckeyes refused to go away, adding two of their own in the bottom of the frame on an RBI groundout by Cory Kovanda and an RBI single off the bat of Miller, who had five hits for the Buckeyes.
UofL plated a run in their fifth consecutive inning with two more in the seventh. Dao singled and Phil Wunderlich was hit by a pitch. Two outs and a double steal later, Clark walked to load the bases, and Stewart Ijames, who had entered as a defensive replacement in the sixth, drilled the first pitch he saw to right for a two-run single and a 13-9 Louisville lead.
In the OSU eighth, a lead single by Tony Kennedy was erased on a 6-4-3 double play, but a pair of throwing errors sandwiched an RBI single, allowing two unearned runs to score.
Freshman Jon Clarence made his Cardinal debut and hit the only batter he faced, giving way to closer B.J. Rosenberg.
With two on, DeLucia hit a pop-up to right that Ijames was unable to make a diving catch on, allowing a run to score. As the runner tried to score from first, McClanahan threw a strike to the plate and Cheesebrough applied the tag, retiring what would have been the tying run.
Catcher Dan Burkhart singled to open the bottom of the ninth, with the Cards protecting a one run lead.
Tyler Engle moved the runner into scoring position with one out on a sac bunt.
Head Coach Dan McDonnell made a final trip to the mound, and Rosenberg responded, setting Kennedy down looking on three pitches.
Kovanda then engaged in a prolonged battle at the plate, fouling off a number of pitches with the tying run at second, working the count to 2-2 before Rosenberg blew a fastball past him for the strikeout and his third save of the season.
Belanger was touched for five runs, three of which were earned in six hits in a third of an inning. After Shaw's four innings, Gavin Logsdon allowed a pair of runs on three hits and a walk in 1.2 frames.
Thomas Royse was victimized for three unearned runs on two hits, also working an inning and two-thirds.
Rosenberg retired the final four batters on two hits to go with the two strikeouts.
For the Buckeyes, Armstrong surrendered four runs - two earned, on six hits, striking out four in three innings of work. Drew Ricinski (1-2) took the loss, giving up five runs on six hits, striking out two in two innings. Three Ohio State relievers followed.
Dao, McClanahan and Clark each four hits in the 19-hit attack. Every Cardinal either collected a hit or scored a run in the win.
Villanova visits The Ville for a three-game weekend set of BIG EAST games beginning at 4:00 p.m. ET on Friday at Jim Patterson Stadium. The game is the first of a nine-game homestand. Admission to all regular season home games is free.
