KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The Ursinus College baseball team routed Curry, 14-1, in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader and held a 6-0 lead late for the potential sweep in the second contest but saw the advantage evaporate in the last inning to suffer a 7-6 setback.
Ursinus (4-2) scored 20 combined runs in the doubleheader, with most of its offensive damage coming in the morning edition. Freshman Jon Moldoff had quite a day, going 5-for-7 with six RBI and two runs scored. In the first game, Moldoff knocked in five runs and finished a home run shy of the cycle.
Setting up Moldoff in the lineup, three-hole hitter junior Alex Mumme finished the day with a pair of two-hit and two-run games. The slugger drove in three runs and scored twice in the first tilt. Mumme doubled for the 39th time of his career to get within five of Chris Jablonski's school record of 44.
Through the first six games, Ursinus is batting .356 and averaging more than nine runs per game, despite four of them being seven-inning affairs.
The Bears received solid pitching starts from both lefties, sophomore Will Peiffer and senior David Drea. Peiffer picked up his first career win after previously closing out a save against SUNY Poly in Ursinus' last game. Peiffer gave the Bears six sharp innings, scattering four hits, allowing a lone run, striking out six, and walking just one.
Drea gave the Bears five good innings of two-run ball, allowing six hits and a walk.
Game 1: Ursinus 14, Curry 1
Ursinus swung bats as hot as the Florida sun and received superb pitching to steamroll Curry in the morning game.
The Bears continued their strong hitting on their way to a bunch of crooked innings at the plate, pounding out 17 hits and scoring in all but one inning. Each starter registered a hit and a run as the Bears pounded out 17 hits in 34 official at-bats. Seven players on the original lineup card picked up two-hit games and six starters drove in runs.
Jump-starting the offense was the ability to get leadoff and two-out hits. The Bears had hits to start the inning in every frame but the opening one. Ursinus also scored half of its runs on two-out hits.
Swinging the hottest bat among the laundry list of slugging Bears was Moldoff, who also scored a run in addition to driving in five and was a home run shy of the cycle.
Mumme knocked in three runs and scored twice in a 2-for-5 effort. Junior Mike Stanziale blasted a two-run home run in the five-run second hitting. The round-tripper was his third of his career. Senior Carter Usowski scored three runs, stole a base, and went 2-for-4.
Peiffer hurled a nice game on the hill and did damage at the plate for the Bears. He went 2-for-3 at the dish with two runs and a run batted in.
The Bears struck first in the opening inning and it was a sign of things to come. Moldoff's two-out double to right field drove in Usowski who reached base on a single to left earlier in the frame.
Ursinus put together a five-run second inning to expand their lead to 6-0. Helping his own cause, Peiffer hit a double to lead off the huge frame. Stanziale smoked a two-run homer to left to give the Bears a 3-0 lead.
A double by junior Dom Fiorentino advanced freshman Dan Icaza, who was hit by a pitch, to third before Mumme knocked in both on a two-out double to center. Moldoff's single up the middle plated Mumme and chased Mello.
Peiffer held the Colonels hitless through two before Curry led off the third inning doubling down the left field line then back-to-back singles scored their first run. Peiffer worked out of trouble. He struck out two Curry batters then sophomore catcher Tom Jacobs gunned down a runner trying to steal third to end the inning.
Icaza delivered another Ursinus two-out hit to score Scavone and Peiffer in the third for the first RBI of his career.
In the fourth, Moldoff knocked Usowski in after he reached on an error by the center fielder. Peiffer doubled in Moldoff with two down in the inning to put the Bears up 10-1. Moldoff greeted the third Curry reliever of the game with a two-RBI triple to right as the Bears went up 14-1 in the fifth.
Senior pitcher Aidan Rogers struck out two hitters in a scoreless final inning.
Game 2: Curry 7, Ursinus 6
The Bears were an out away from sweeping the Colonels in the second game.
Ursinus got off to a great start in the first inning as it plated three runs. The top of the order of Fiorentino, Usowski and Mumme all reached base before Moldoff singled home Fiorentino. Moldoff went 2-for-3 with a run and RBI. Scavone's double-play grounder scored Usowski. Peiffer slugged a triple to plate Mumme. Peiffer collected two RBI.
At the plate in the third, two singles through the left by Mumme and Moldoff came around to score. Peiffer scored Mumme on a sacrifice fly to center. Mumme went 2-for-4 with two runs. Then a sacrifice bunt by Stanziale scored Moldoff.
Sophomore Erik Gross singled to right center in order to drive in Scavone which gave way to a new Curry pitcher as the Bears led 6-0. Curry reliever Michael Mulrean held the Bears' offense scoreless from then on out. Usowski's ground rule double in the sixth inning was Mulrean's only hit surrendered.
Drea's first two innings were of the 1-2-3 variety. Curry (3-5) finally broke through with two runs on a single among their four total hits in the bottom of the third to cut into Ursinus' 6-2 edge.
In the seventh, Curry singled, walked, and singled to score its first run of a four-run game-winning inning. The Bears brought in senior pitcher Mark LeDuc in the middle of the frame to try to extinguish the flames. He surrendered a run-scoring single. LeDuc recorded a sacrifice bunt out then intentionally walked a hitter. The reliever generated an infield popup as the second out.
In baseball they say the toughest out of the game is the last and that saying held true for the Bears. The Colonels worked a bases-loaded walk to tie the game 6-6. Curry's Tyler Jenkins was then hit by a pitch to give Curry the walk-off win.
The Bears have an off day Thursday then continue their spring swing Friday when they make the trip southwest to Lake Region High School to take on Nichols for a doubleheader starting at 10:30 a.m.