4/7/2002 - Baseball
Navy Baseball Splits Doubleheader with Bucknell
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LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Navy baseball team split a doubleheader with Bucknell Sunday afternoon at Bucknell Field, as the Bison won the four-game series by taking three-out-of-four from the Mids. Navy won the first game 6-4 in eight innings, while Bucknell closed out the series with a 4-1 victory in the second game.
In the opener, Navy (9-17, 4-4 Patriot League) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning on left fielder Dominic Nicolini's (Sr./Merrillville, Ind.) RBI-triple to right center and catcher David Woolsey's (Sr./Columbia, S.C.) RBI-single to left.
Bucknell pushed across a run in the bottom of the third and fourth innings to tie the game at 2-2. Navy came back in the top of the fifth inning when Woolsey scored from third base on a fielding error by Bucknell first baseman Pete Wolf. Right fielder John Cocca (Sr./Whitehall, Pa.) gave the Mids a 4-2 advantage when he scored from third on Jake Miller's (Jr./Santa Maria, Calif.) fielder's choice.
The Bison fought back and tied the game with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning on third baseman B.J. Batterson's single to center, scoring Larry Scheetz and Sam Moss.
In the top of the eighth inning, Navy scored twice to take a 6-4 lead before closing the game out in the bottom of the inning. Miller led off the inning with a triple to left center and scored on shortstop Brad Hager (Jr./Delray Beach, Fla.) RBI-single to left. Nicolini's double down the left field line plated Hager who scored from first to give Navy the win.
Navy relief pitcher Bryan Koehler (Sr./Lutz, Fla.) blew a save opportunity in the bottom of the seventh but hung on for the win, improving to 3-0, while Bucknell reliever Kevin Miller dropped to 0-2. Hager led the Mids with a 3-for-3 performance and scored two runs. Nicolini and Woolsey also had two hits apiece.
In the nightcap, Bucknell (13-20, 4-4) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, but Navy trimmed the Bison lead to one in the top of the fifth on Jason Guidos' (Sr./Portland, Ore.) RBI-single to left center, scoring Hager.
Two unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth inning gave Bucknell a 4-1 lead. Navy put runners on second and third with one out in the top of the sixth but couldn't score, as the Bison held on for the win.
Bucknell starting pitcher Sean Magee struckout six batters to push his record to 3-2, while Navy's Matt Cooney (Jr./Mountaintop, Pa.) fell to 0-4 on the season.
Navy returns to action Tuesday afternoon when the Mids travel to Baltimore to take on UMBC at 3 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for March 5 but was rescheduled due to inclement weather.
