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 Aaron Dunsmore had two doubles and a triple in a 4-for-5 day at Fifth Third Field |
May 21, 2009
DAYTON, Ohio - The University of Dayton Flyers opened up the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship with a 9-5 win against the UMass Minutemen at Fifth Third Field in downtown Dayton on Thursday. A-10 Rookie of the Year Cameron Hobson set a single-season school record notching his 83rd strikeout of the season.
Hobson pitched 7.2 innings with five strikeouts , three walks and three earned runs against. Reliever Sean Finn went 1.1 innings with two punchouts.
Aaron Dunsmore led the Brown Street Bombers with a fiery 4-for-5 day tacking on two runs and three RBI. Dunsmore smacked a pair of doubles and a triple, falling a home run short of the cycle on Thursday.
Marshall MacDonald was 3-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored. Jonathan Castine pinch hit to a 2-for-2 performance with a pair of RBI.
The Minutemen drew first blood with a double by right fielder Matt Donato in the top of the first inning to take the lead 1-0.
Jacob Spaeth reached on a leadoff bunt for the Flyers in the bottom of the first for UD's first hit of the game. Zach Jacob was walked on next at-bat, leaving cleanup hitter Marshall MacDonald to find the gap in right centerfield for a two RBI double. Jake Hoover added to the lead, chopping a base hit up the middle scoring MacDonald to give the Flyers a 3-1 lead through one inning.
Jacob's base hit up the middle in the second inning allowed Scott Dunwoody to come home on the play.
A scary moment happened in the bottom of the second inning, when Aaron Dunsmore's line drive hit left-handed pitcher Nick Serino in the back. Serino was attended to by training personnel and left the game under his own power. The Minutemen replaced Serino with their closer Mitchell Eilenberg.
UMass added a run on a base hit to center field in the top of the fourth inning and then tacked an additional run on due to a fielding error.
Dunsmore answered in the fourth inning with a RBI double that looped over both the right fielder and center fielder's heads to score MacDonald from second base.
Chiming in once again, Dunsmore cranked his second double of the day bringing Dunwoody in. Pinch hitter Jonathan Castine stepped up knocking home Dunsmore to increase the Flyer lead to 7-3.
UMass responded with a solo home run the top of the eighth inning.
Dunsmore continued his relentless assault at the plate ripping a triple to center field scoring MacDonald in the bottom half of the eighth inning. Castine's single to left field scored Dunsmore for the final run of the game for the Flyers.
UMass tacked on one more run in the ninth inning but fell short of a rally.
The Flyers will play the winner of today's No. 3 Xavier / No. 2 Rhode Island game at Noon ET on Friday. Single day tickets for tomorrow's game are $8 for adults and $4 for senior citizens and youth.