March 2, 2010

RedStorm lose to SSU in extras

Portsmouth, OH --- The University of Rio Grande RedStorm baseball team was finally able to get back on the diamond after a week of postponements and perhaps the layoff had a negative effect as Rio Grande lost to archrival Shawnee State 4-3 in 10 innings at Branch Rickey Park. 

Rio Grande (7-2) led 3-2 heading into the eighth inning and two dropped fly balls proved very costly. The first miscue came in the ninth frame with two outs and allowed the tying run to score. One inning later the same thing occurred again and Shawnee State scored the winning run as a result. 

The RedStorm offense was not totally without blame. Rio Grande did not have a hit after the fifth inning. Rio left nine runners on base in the game.

"We left numerous runners on base," said Rio Grande head coach Brad Warnimont. "We didn't execute our short game. We didn't do anything with runners in scoring position."

"We shut it down after the fifth inning," Warnimont added. 

The Rio mentor was especially frustrated because his team squandered a tremendous pitching performance from junior righthander Angel Santiago (Santa Isabel, PR). "Angel threw a gem. He really pounded the strike zone." 

Santiago fired six shutout innings allowing only three hits to the Bears and has nothing but a no-decision to show for it. 

Shawnee State (6-2) broke through in the seventh inning off junior Desmond Sullivan (Scarborough, ONT). He started the inning giving up a walk and a base hit and both runners ended up scoring. 

Senior Tyler Schunk (Cincinnati, OH) absorbed the loss in relief. Schunk (1-1) was touched up for two unearned runs in the final 1 2/3 innings.

Senior catcher Tyler Plumpton (Peterborough, ONT) and senior designated hitter Chris Mahon (Hamilton, OH) led the way offensively, going 2-for-4 for Rio Grande. One of Mahon's two hits was a double. 

Schunk was 1-for-2 with a double and an RBI and centerfielder Ryan Yakura (Pickering, ONT) was 1-for-4 with an RBI on a perfectly executed squeeze bunt. Junior second baseman Christian Frias (Salinas, PR) also went 1-for-4. 

Rio is not scheduled to play again until March 12-13 at Lindsey Wilson College in the Mid-South Conference opening series but Coach Warnimont is hoping to try to make up some of the earlier postponements this weekend at Bob Evans Field.