ETTRICK, Va. – The Holy Family University baseball team got off to a perfect start, winning its first two games as a program, 6-2 and 5-1, as it swept Virginia State on Saturday afternoon.
Individual Highlights
- Brian Comer (Charlotte, N.C./Independence (Bucks County CC)) finished the doubleheader 3-for-5 with four stolen bases, three runs and two walks, with his two-RBI double in the second inning of game two proving to be the game-winner
- Casey Murphy (Merion Station, Pa./Lower Merion (Ursinus College)) earned the complete game win in the rain-shortened nightcap, allowing just the one run on two hits with eight strikeouts
- Stefan Leo (Golden, Colo./Golden Senior (Porterville CC)) recorded HFU's first-ever hit and RBI, driving in three with a bases-clearing double with one out in the first that turned out to be the game-winner
- Jelle Bing (Heerhugowaard, Netherlands/CSG Jan Arentsz (McCrook CC)) earned the Tigers' first win as he threw the first five innings of game one, scattering five hits while striking out seven against zero walks
- Denis Szychulski (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge (Bucks County CC)) then came in for the save, retiring all six batters he faced to put a stamp on the historic victory
- Zach Morales (Barrington, N.J./Triton Regional) finished the opener 2-for-3 with a double, base on balls, run and RBI, while
Inside the Box Score
- Holy Family's trio of pitchers limited the Trojans to a .167 batting average (7-for-42) on the day
How it Happened
First Game
- Leo's bases-clearing double followed base on balls by Comer, Nick Lombardo (Willow Grove, Pa./Upper Dublin (Bucks County CC)) and Morales
- Belle worked 1-2-3 frames in both the first and third, with a second inning sacrifice fly cutting the lead to 3-1
- Another Comer base on balls, this one in the fifth, led to HFU regaining a three-run edge as he came home on a two-out double by Morales
- The Trojans got within two once more in the fifth, but Jelle stranded the tying runner on first
Second Game
- Both teams plated one in the first, with Virginia State canceling out Leo's RBI double
- Holy Family immediately responded via Comer's two-RBI double though, which scored Isaac Criss (Grove City, Pa./Grove City (Bucks County CC)) and Emidio Bucci (Gambrills, Md./Loyola Blakefield (York College)) after the two had drawn walks
- Murphy took over from there, retiring 13 of the final 14 he faced as another Trojan did not reach scoring position
Up Next
The two teams complete their four-game series with another doubleheader at 12 p.m. tomorrow.