March 8, 2009
Game One Box Score (Navy 14, Central Connecticut State 7)
Game Two Box Score (Navy 15, Iona 3)
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy infielders Kendall Bolt (Jr./Stockton, Calif.) and Jonathan Berkowitz (Jr./Parkland, Fla.) combined to go went 10-for-19 with four doubles, two home runs, 15 RBIs and two stolen bases on Sunday to lead the Midshipmen to victories over Central Connecticut State, 14-7, and Iona, 15-3, at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.
Navy's (4-4-1) 29 runs scored on Sunday were the most in a doubleheader since plating 35 runs in two games against Army on April 11, 1998.
"Baseball is a crazy day and today was one of those days. We had struggled to score runs and today we score 29 times," stated Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "You never really know when it's going to turn. We had some good at bats and took some good swings, which resulted in a good day at the plate."
Bolt, who batted in the cleanup position, finished the afternoon 5-for-9 with a double, home run, eight RBIs, two stolen bases, two walks and three runs scored. Berkowitz followed the act one spot down in the order with a 5-for-10 showing at the dish with three doubles, one home run, seven RBIs, one walk and three runs scored.
"Both Kendall and Jonathan were huge in both ends of today's doubleheader," said Kostacopoulos. "They were pivotal in both games being able to both drive in runs and score runs.
"Today was the result of what we have been working towards. We took advantage of our opportunities and did not have many misses on good balls to hit."
In the opener against Central Connecticut State (3-1), Navy pounded out 19 hits, eight of which were of the extra-base variety. Bolt, Nick Driscoll (So./Riverview, Fla.) and Jonathan Wright (So./Arden, N.C.) each had three hits, while Berkowitz, Michael Speciale (Jr./Pearland, Texas) and Steven Soares (Jr./Coral Springs, Fla.) collected two hits apiece. Bolt had three RBIs, while Driscoll had two doubles and Speciale scored three times and triples.
The Midshipmen were also successful in all six of their stolen base attempts, with Bolt leading the way with a pair of steals.
Central Connecticut State jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first before Navy answered with four runs in the bottom half of the frame to take the lead for good. Bolt smacked a RBI-double to right-center and scored the go-ahead run on Driscoll's two-out, two-run double to the gap in left-center. The Mids tacked on three runs in the third inning to go up 7-2, highlighted by a Berkowitz solo shot to right and a Driscoll RBI-two-bagger down the left-field line.
The Blue Devils made things interesting in the fourth, scoring four runs to pull within two, 7-5, and chase starter Zach Sipe (Fr./Huffman, Texas). The Mids called upon fellow rookie TJ Kerins (Fr./Marietta, Ga.) and he delivered five innings of one-run relief with no walks to preserve the lead and earn his first-career victory.
"TJ had a very good weekend for us, getting a win today and the save on Friday," stated Kostacopoulos. "He's a young guy that we hope gets better each and every time he gets on the mound. Today, he had his fastball and offspeed pitches in the strikezone, but needs to located a little better."
While Kerins did his part, Navy's offense produced two runs in the sixth and five in the seventh to put the game out of reach. Bolt had a RBI-single in each of those innings, while Berkowitz launched a two-run double to cap the scoring in the seventh.
In the nightcap against Iona (0-10), Navy's offense collected 11 hits - six for extra bases, drew 10 walks and was hit by a pitch twice. Bolt went 2-for-4 with a home run, five RBIs and two walks, while Berkowitz registered a 3-for-6 showing at the plate with two doubles and three RBIs.
The two teams were scoreless for the first-three innings before Iona grabbed a 2-0 lead in the fourth. However, that would not last long, as the Mids knotted the game in the fourth with Berkowitz's two-out double down the right-field line.
One inning later, Navy scored eight runs - all with two outs - and sent 12 batters to the plate to put the Gaels away. Bolt hit a three-run, inside-the-park home run that hit the top of the fence and caromed well back onto the field away from the centerfielder who was at the fence. Matthew Curley (Jr./Boston, Mass.) also had three RBIs in the frame, as he delivered a bases-loaded, bases-clearing double down the left-field line.
The Midshipmen tacked on four in the seventh and one in the eighth for insurance. Bolt drove in a run each of the frames with a walk and single, respectively, while Berkowitz hit his third double of the day, a two-run shot off the fence in right, during the seventh.
Navy starter Wes Olson (So./Indianapolis, Ind.) earned his first win of the season with seven innings of five-hit baseball with no walks and one strikeout. He threw 99 pitches on the day, 63 of which were strikes.
"Wes has to pitch the way he did today in order to be effective," said Kostacopoulos. "He was able to get a lot of ground balls and has to work from the knees down."
The Midshipmen will head to Davenport Field in Charlottesville, Va., to take on undefeated Virginia (12-0) this Tuesday at 4 p.m. The Cavaliers are fresh off a three-game ACC sweep of Wake Forest this weekend, outscoring the Demon Deacons, 47-13.
DIAMOND NOTES
- Navy's 29 runs scored on Sunday was the most in a doubleheader by the Mids since plating 35 runs against Army in Annapolis on April 11, 1998 ... in that twinbill, the Midshipmen defeated the Black Knights, 19-7 and 16-3.
- Navy plated 10-plus runs in back-to-back games for the first time since 2006, when it scored 11 times at George Mason before producing 10 runs against Holy Cross in Annapolis.
- Navy's 15 runs against Iona and 19 hits against Central Connecticut State were the most since a 17-run, 23-hit performance at Delaware State on April 29, 2008 ... that was head coach Paul Kostacopoulos's 600th career win.
- The Midshipmen registered their first doubleheader sweep since taking both ends of their twinbill against Holy Cross on April 26, 2008 ... in fact, the Mids have recorded sweeps in three of their last-seven doubleheaders.
- On Sunday, Navy's offense combined to hit .375 (30-for-80) with 11 doubles, one triple, two home runs, 24 RBIs, 15 walks and eight stolen bases in as many attempts ... for the weekend, the Midshipmen batted .340 (50-for-147) with 42 runs scored, 17 doubles, one triple, three home runs, 25 walks and 12 stolen bases.
- By virtue of Sunday's performance, Navy upped its team batting average from .219 to .260, slugging percentage from .290 to .375, and on-base percentage from .314 to .360.
- Kendall Bolt finished the weekend 8-for-17 with two doubles, a home run, 11 RBIs, five runs scored, three walks and three stolen bases ... his five-RBI performance against Iona on Sunday tied a career high he set against Coppin State on April 24, 2008 ... his two base swipes against Central Connecticut State on Sunday were a career high.
- Jonathan Berkowitz belted four doubles and one home run with eight RBIs while going 7-for-16 over the weekend's four games ... his four RBIs against Central Connecticut State on Sunday were a career high ... later in the day against Iona, he tied his career high with three hits.
- Navy's eight-run fifth inning against Iona was the most runs scored by the Mids in one stanza since they put up a nine-spot at Maryland-Eastern Shore in the third inning on March 13, 2008.
- One day after having a runner on base in every inning, the Midshipmen repeated the act in the opener against Central Connecticut State ... Navy had produced a base runner in 21-consecutive innings before going down in order during the second inning against Iona.
- Meanwhile, Navy's pitching staff issued only nine walks in 36.0 innings of action with 26 strikeouts on the weekend ... on Sunday, the Midshipmen issued only four free passes in 18.0 innings with nine strikeouts.
- Wes Olson went a career-long 7.0 innings for the Midshipmen on Sunday against Iona ... his previous longest outing came against Air Force this spring and at Delaware State last year, both 5.1-inning performances.
