HIGH POINT, N.C. – No. 20/25 Shenandoah University is now 27 outs from its fourth ODAC baseball title after beating Roanoke, 5-4, Saturday afternoon at Truist Point.
Senior
Kyle Lisa, who drove in three runs, drove home
Kooper Anderson with the game's winning run with two outs in the ninth to push SU (33-10-1) past Roanoke (25-15).
IN BRIEF
Lisa's two-out single capped a ninth inning in which the Maroons had tied the game at 4-4 by combining two hits and a wild pitch off of SU reliever
Carson Kulina.
Kulina (3-0), who came on for starter
Calvin Pastel to start the eighth, got the initial out of the ninth before Roanoke had a pair of singles to put runners on the corners with one out. The wild pitch tied the game before Kulina prevented further damage by inducing a pair of groundball fielder's choice outs.
Kulina allowed the one run on three hits and two walks (one intentional) in two innings of work. Pastel gave up three runs on five hits and two walks in seven innings. He also struck out six.
Shenandoah scored its initial run as
Frankie Ritter led off the SU first with a single and then scored on Lisa's double to left.
Roanoke tied the game one run in the second and took a 3-1 lead in the fourth as catcher PK Cocolis hit a two-run shot to left.
The Hornets, who finished with 10 hits, struggled against RC starter Will Turner until chasing Turner with three runs on three hits and one Maroons error in the seventh. At the point that Turner departed, he had thrown 62 pitches and only five balls.
Haden Madagan and
Henry Delavergne had back-to-back singles to get the Hornets started before Roanoke airmailed the throw into right field on Anderson's sacrifice bunt attempt. This allowed Madagan to score and Delavergne to move to third.
Delavergne then scored the tying run on a wild pitch before
Kyle Lisa put SU on top with a single through the right side.
In the ninth, Anderson led off by being hit by a pitch and was sacrificed to second by
Logan Wood. Pinch hitter
Sam Horn struck out following Wood, sending Lisa up to the plate with the chance to be the hero.
The senior delivered, sending the 1-1 pitch to center to bring Anderson around from second with the game-winning run.
Ryan Cloude (1-2) took the loss for Roanoke. He gave up one run on one hit in 2 1/3 innings. Lisa's game-winner came off of submariner Austin Bansek.
UP NEXT
Shenandoah plays for the ODAC championship with a 10 a.m. contest Sunday versus the winner of the Lynchburg versus Roanoke loser's bracket final. SU only needs one win Sunday to claim the title.
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