KUTZTOWN, Pa. --Â The Kutztown University baseball team (4-11, 1-3 PSAC East) scored nine unanswered runs to earn a massive victory in game two of a doubleheader split against No. 15 West Chester (10-1, 3-1 PSAC East) Monday afternoon at North Campus Field.
Game one was one to forget for KU, as it went down six runs in the first inning and couldn't come back in a 17-6 defeat. Game two looked similar after the Golden Rams took an 8-0 lead, but the Golden Bears showed great fight, battling all the way back to win 9-8.
The game-two win snapped a seven-game losing skid for the Golden Bears and was West Chester's first loss of the season. It's the second time this season KU has beaten a ranked opponent, with the other time coming against No. 20 Mount Olive on Feb. 17. It's also only the third time KU has beaten West Chester in its last 14 meetings dating back to 2021.
The Golden Bears will look to ride the momentum into tomorrow, Tuesday, March 12 as Chestnut Hill makes the trip to North Campus Field for a single nine-inning contest. First pitch is slated for 3 p.m.Â
Game One: West Chester 17, Kutztown 6
The Golden Rams plated six runs in the top of the first inning and didn't look back, downing KU 17-6 in game one of the doubleheader.Â
Jason Wolff (Hillsborough, N.J./Hillsborough) went 3-for-3 for the second straight game against the Golden Rams, with two RBI and his first home run of the season. Michael Burns (Levittown, Pa./Harry S. Truman) went 2-2 with two runs. Ty Frattaroli (Waxhaw, N.C./Cuthbertson) registered his first career hit and home run in a pinch-hitting role to go along with two RBI. Jimmy Kerley (Indian Trail, N.C./Sun Valley) had a hit and an RBI, while Dominic Proietto (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) had an RBI.
After the six-run outburst in the top of the first, the Golden Bears stayed in the game with a run in the bottom of the first and third thanks to a hit-by-pitch drawn by Proietto and a Kerley RBI double to make it 6-2 after three. The teams traded long balls in the fourth and fifth frames, starting with a two-run shot from John DeMucci, matched with a two-run shot from Wolff to make it 8-4.
West Chester pulled away even more in the top of the sixth, plating five runs to make it 13-4. The Golden Rams added four more in the top of the seventh to make it 17-4. In the bottom of the seventh, freshman Ty Frattaroli (Waxhaw, N.C./Cuthbertson) smacked the ball over the left field fence for the first hit and home run of his college career. That's all KU could produce as West Chester walked away 17-4 winners.Â
Zach Male (Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford) took the loss for KU, while Kannon Zdimal (Morgantown, Pa./Twin Valley) and AJ Torres (Blandon, Pa./Fleetwood) saw action in relief. Drew Simpson earned the win for West Chester
Game Two: Kutztown 9, West Chester 8
The second game of the day looked to be on a similar track as game one after KU went down 8-0 after 2 ½ innings, but the Golden Bears scored nine unanswered runs to secure a massive 9-8 comeback victory.Â
Ethan Martini (Trevose, Pa./Father Judge) had one of his best games of the season, going 3-for-3 with three RBI and two runs. Wolff continued his hot streak in game two, going 2-for-4 with three RBI. Kerley had three hits and an RBI, and Cole Regn (Berlin, N.J./Eastern Regional) also had three hits. Frattaroli also notched an RBI in the win.Â
Trevor Leverington (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) earned the win for KU, going six innings allowing seven hits and five earned runs. Abel Saft (Kintnersville, Pa./Moravian Academy) earned the save, while Tyler Cleveland (Pillow, Pa./Upper Dauphin) saw time in relief. Julian Costa took the loss for West Chester.Â
The Golden Rams picked up right where they left off in game one, plating three runs on one hit in the top of the second to make it 3-0. West Chester added five more in the next inning to amass an 8-0 lead early on in the game.
KU started to chip away in the next half-inning. With two outs and two runners on, Wolff doubled to right to score Kerley and Martini to make it 8-2. That same trio combined for four RBI in the next inning to quickly make things an 8-6 game. A wild pitch in the fifth inning allowed Bo Barthol (Breinigsville, Pa./Parkland) to score as KU only trailed by one entering the sixth inning.
The Golden Bears were able to work the base loaded with only one out in the inning. Frattaroli earned a walk, which scored Zach Tropiano (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) to tie the game at eight. The next at-bat, Martini hit a deep fly ball to center field to score Regn and give KU the 9-8 lead heading into the final inning.Â
In the top of the seventh, the Golden Rams were able to get a runner into scoring position with one out, forcing Saft into the game. With runners on first and third, Sean Szestowkicki popped up a bunt in a hit-and-run situation. Kerley caught the ball and fired it over to first to get out John Dunion for the game-ending double play.Â
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