March 21, 2004
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Purdue baseball team concluded its spring break trip with a three-game sweep of the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. The Boilermakers took the first two game by scores of 6-0 and 13-7 before winning the finale on Sunday 7-5.
For the second straight game Purdue jumped out in front in the top of the first inning. With catcher Ben Fritz (Sr., Minnetonka, Minn.) on third and first baseman Eric Wolfe (So., Toronto, Ontario) on first, designated hitter John Hunter (So., West Lafayette, Ind.) drove in Fritz on a sacrifice fly to right for the game's first run. Third baseman Simon Klink (Sr., Auburn, Ind.) then singled to put runners on first and second. Right fielder Matt Bush (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind.) followed by reaching on a grounder to second that was thrown away. The error scored Wolfe all the way from second and sent Klink to third. Second baseman Eric Osborn (Fr., Fishers, Ind.) then beat out a slow roller down the third base line which scored Klink to give the Boilermakers the early 3-0 lead.
The Gamecocks cut into Purdue's lead on a pair of runs in the bottom of the third and took a 4-3 advantage with two more runs in the fourth. Jacksonville State threatened for more in the fourth as they loaded the bases with two outs, but Trae Dauby (So., Dale, Ind.) came out of the bullpen and struck out the first hitter he faced to end the inning.
Purdue tied the game with a run in the top of the sixth after Klink led off the inning with a walk and stole second. Osborn then drove a single to left field bringing home Klink and evening the score at four.
The Boilermakers regained the lead for good in their half of the seventh. Shortstop Mitch Koester (Sr., Effingham, Ill.) led off with a single through the infield and then stole second. Fritz walked to make it first and second and Koester then advanced to third on a pickoff throw that went into centerfield. Left fielder Mitch Hilligoss (Fr., Windsor, Ill.) connected for a single to left that scored Koester to give Purdue a 5-4 lead. Wolfe was then hit by a pitch to load the bases. Hunter came to the plate and singled up the middle scoring Fritz and Hilligoss which extended the lead to 7-4. The Gamecocks plated their final run in the eighth to make it 7-5.
Chris Toneguzzi (So., Thunder Bay, Ontario) made the start on the mound for Purdue and went three innings, allowed two runs off three hits and struck out six. Dauby (1-0) got the win and threw four innings in relief allowing just one run on three hits while striking out four. Jason Driscoll (Sr., Mishawaka, Ind.) notched his first save of the year for the Boilermakers with 1.1 innings of work. He did not allow a hit and struck out two.
The victory improved Purdue's record to 6-8 on the year while Jacksonville State dropped to 6-13.
After opening the season with 14 games on the road, the Boilermakers are set to open the home portion of their schedule on Wednesday as they host the Cincinnati Bearcats at 3 p.m. at Lambert Field.