Box Score

In the Press: Carlisle Sentinel Recap

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Senior Cody Kulp hit a pair of RBI-doubles, senior Tom Bush threw seven innings of one-run ball, and senior David McKolosky ended Friday's game with a sensational diving catch in left field as the Shippensburg University baseball team notched its first NCAA tournament victory since 2008 with a 4-1 win over Atlantic No. 1 seed Millersville at Gene Hooks Field.

Shippensburg (29-21) staved off elimination with the win and will face the host school, Winston-Salem State (39-12), in another do-or-die game at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The Marauders will play at 11 a.m. Saturday in an elimination game of their own against East Stroudsburg, who lost to Seton Hill.

“There's no doubt there was a little something extra today,” head coach Matt Jones said. “We were kind of disappointed with how we played last night.”

The Raiders did not get cheated in their at-bats against NCBWA and Daktronics Atlantic Region Pitcher of the Year Chris Murphy – who allowed a season-high 11 hits in 6.2 innings of work. Murphy defeated Shippensburg in the regular season, 2-1, in a complete-game effort at Fairchild Field on April 6.

“We felt like we needed to prove something,” Jones said. “To do it against that kind of a pitcher means even more.”

Seven hits came off the bats of seniors – including the clutch doubles by Kulp, a 3-for-3 effort by catcher Tyler Shover, an RBI-single by McKolosky in the seventh and a single early on by Simon Beloff.

Millersville (39-17) opened the scoring in the third inning, scraping together a run on a two-out single by Mark Stuckey. It was the only blemish against Bush, who scattered nine singles in an 82-pitch effort that included two walks and two strikeouts. No runner reached third base in his final four innings of work.

“I am so proud and happy for Tommy Bush right now,” Jones said of his starting pitcher. “He's a phenomenal kid and probably the heart and soul of our team. For this to be the start that he gave his teammates in the regional, as a senior, I couldn't be happier for a kid.”


In the sixth, SU claimed the lead with two outs on the second Kulp double, as Hogan scored from second base but Shover was thrown out at home plate on the play in a bang-bang play.

One inning later, the Raiders padded their lead with two more runs. A leadoff double by sophomore Jimmy Spanos became the first run after McKolosky sent a 2-0 pitch up the middle between a drawn-in infield to make the score 3-1. McKolosky then stole second, moved to third on a groundout, and scored on a beautiful bunt single by junior Cal Hogan.

“David McKolosky played the game of his life,” Jones said. “David is a four-year player who just kept getting better and we finally found a role for him. That catch was unbelievable and saved the game.”

Junior Austin Bartley came out of the bullpen in the eighth to secure a two-inning save. Bartley induced a double play in the eighth to face the minimum and then, after a two-out single in the ninth by Evan King, finished up with the fly out on which McKolosky went into a full sprint toward left-center field and leapt to save the day.