By: By Kevin Kline, Sports Information Assistant
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
WHAG-TV Highlights
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The No. 12-ranked Shippensburg University baseball team used a go-ahead three-run eighth inning in Game 2 on Thursday afternoon to complete its first PSAC East series sweep since the end of the 2012 season with a doubleheader victory over Mansfield courtesy of a 3-1 final in the opener and a 6-4 extra-innings decision in the nightcap from Fairchild Field.
The Raiders (16-3, 4-0 PSAC East) improve their winning streak to 12 games and take sole possession of first place in the divisional standings through one week of conference play. The sweep of Mansfield (12-7, 0-4) is its first over the Mountaineers since 1998.
With the pair of two-run victories, SU has now had 12 of its 16 wins this season decided by two runs or less.
Junior pitcher
Nick Massetti improved his record to 4-0 with another strong outing in Game 1, carrying a no-hitter into the fourth inning and finishing with three hits and one run allowed in six innings with four strikeouts. Senior
Austin Bartley pitched a clean seventh to earn a career-best fifth save of the season (his 13 career saves are now four short of tying the school record).
Six different Raiders took the mound in Game 2, with senior
Shawn Patterson earning the start and giving up zero hits in 2.2 innings of work. Sophomore
Kyle McClintock (1.1 innings), freshman
Josh Kutchey (1.2, two strikeouts) and Bartley (0.1) followed Patterson.
Sophomore
Thomas Swartz earned his first career win in pitching the seventh before senior first baseman
Pat Kregeloh moved over to pitch the eighth and earned his first save of the season and second of his career.
Junior left fielder
Cody Ezolt hit his first career home run with a go-ahead two-run shot to left field in the fifth inning of Game 2 to follow up an RBI single in the opener.
Senior center fielder
Michael Douglas went 3-for-4 with two runs scored in Game 2 and finished the day with two stolen bases. Freshman catcher
Jake Kennedy went 2-for-3 with a run driven in and a run scored in the opener and junior second baseman
Jimmy Spanos went 2-for-4 with two RBIs in the second game.
Senior third baseman
Cal Hogan and sophomore shortstop
Mike Marcinko each also drove in a run on the day, with Marcinko's RBI single up the middle in the top of the eighth in Game 2 the eventual game-winning hit.
Shippensburg will immediately turn around to play its second PSAC East series this weekend against East Stroudsburg. SU is scheduled to host the Warriors tomorrow afternoon in a 1 p.m. doubleheader from Fairchild Field before traveling to East Stroudsburg on Saturday for a 1 p.m. twinbill.
With rain in the forecast for the weekend, any potential schedule changes will immediately be made available on shipraiders.com, on Twitter at
@ShipURaiders and via
SMS alerts.