BASEBALL

Roster  |  Coaches  |  Schedule / Results  |  News

Bulls Split Weekend Doubleheaders

UB spent the weekend in Emmitsburg, Maryland with a four-game series against Mt. St. Mary's, a team the Bulls had already beaten once during the Florida swing the previous week. The Bulls and Mountaineers split the series as both squads picked up two wins apiece.

UB fell in the opener on Saturday 12-8 and rebounded to take the nightcap 7-1 on Tyler Balentine's (Mendon, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima) three-hitter. On Sunday, the Bulls dropped an 8-7 decision but rallied in the second contest to win 7-6 in nine innings.

The Bulls opened Saturday's first game against the Mountaineers slow as starting pitcher John Sullivan (Buffalo, NY/Timon/St. Jude) was unable to complete the first inning as Mt. St. Mary's jumped out to 9-2 lead. Senior Jeff Robertson (Kenmore, NY/Kenmore West) relieved Sullivan and went the rest of the way on the hill as the Bulls closed the gap to 9-8 in the third inning but could not get any closer.

In the second contest, it was all Balentine as he scattered just three hits, allowing the lone score on a fifth-inning home run by Burt Stormes, while striking out six to notch his first win of the year. Balentine got help offensively from Mike Flaherty (Spencerport, NY/Spencerport) with a pair of RBIs. Bryan Sanchez (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua Academy) and Brandon DiCesare (Rochester, NY/McQuaid Jesuit) also had run-scoring doubles in the game.

On Sunday, the Bulls jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the opener as Eric Huber (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) led the offensive attack with three hits and a pair of RBIs. However, the Mountaineers rallied for three runs in the sixth and scored four more in the seventh to take the 8-7 decision. All four Mt. St. Mary's seventh-inning runs scored after two outs. Three of those runs scored when Tim Sova (Rochester, NY/Greece Athena) misplayed a ball in left field.

In the weekend's final contest, it was the Bulls who did the rallying. After spotting the Mountaineers a 6-1 lead after two innings, the Bulls buckled down scoring once in the third on a DiCesare RBI single and three times in the sixth as Rob Golemba (New City, NY/Clarkstown South) scored on a Sanchez sacrifice fly and Joe Todoro (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) doubled plating two runs to make the score 6-5 after six innings.

The Bulls knotted the contest when pinch-hitter Scott Gruver (Vestal, NY/Vestal) smacked his first homer of the season sending the game into extra innings.

In the top of the ninth, the Bulls pushed across the winning run as Adrian Daniels (Spencerport, NY/Spencerport) walked and took second on Golemba's sacrifice. Sova then plated Daniels with the game-winner on a single to give the Bulls the 7-6 victory.

UB relievers Mike Leslie (Suffern, NY/Suffern), Mark Esposito (Fairport, NY/Fairport) and Bob Batdorf (Endwell, NY/Maine-Endwell) did not allow a single run while only surrendering a pair of hits to keep the Bulls in the contest.

Huber led the Bulls' hitting attack going 8-for-15 with four runs scored and six RBIs, while Golemba was 6-for-15 with seven runs scored from his leadoff position. For the year, Huber, who missed all of the 2000 season with an ACL injury, leads the Bulls with a .440 batting average while riding a six-game hitting streak.

On the mound, Leslie lowered his ERA to a team-best 1.17 with his outing in Sunday's finale. Robertson leads the staff with 14 strikeouts while Balentine, the team leader in innings pitched with 17.1, and Anthony Puccia (Penfield, NY/Penfield) each have 13 strikeouts.