Trojans Take Series Finale From FAU 10-6

Sunday, March 14

Troy, Ala.

1:00 pm

Troy University

Florida Atlantic

3/14/2010 9:45:00 PM | Baseball

After two days of too many strikeouts and missed opportunities, the Troy Trojans cut down on the Ks and took better advantage of their scoring chances on Sunday to take a 10-6 victory over Florida Atlantic.

The win salvaged the final game of the opening weekend of Sun Belt Conference play for the Trojans (6-7, 1-2). The loss for the Owls (8-5, 2-1) snapped a five-game win streak.

The Trojans struck only twice in the game after tying a school record with 17 on Saturday. The increased contact resulted in 14 hits, including five that went for extra bases.

“We had a lot of opportunities offensively and I like the way we changed our approach at the plate,” Trojans coach Bobby Pierce said. “The kids responded the way we wanted them to respond and we had a lot of base hits because of that. We had a little bad luck in the first and second innings when we hit into the 1-2-3 double plays, but we looked a whole lot better at the plate.”

Sophomore Tyler Ray (2-2) was the beneficiary of the better offensive production. The right-hander, who battled a stomach virus all week, went six innings, scattering 11 hits and allowing just three earned runs. He did not walk anyone and struck out four.

Junior Nick Ward and senior Robby Loew combined to work the final three innings, with Loew closing the door for his first career save.

“I thought Tyler pitched pretty good, under the circumstances, and I thought Robby Loew pitched really well late,” Pierce said. “We knew Tyler's stamina was going to be an issue because he was sick all week. He gave a gutsy performance because he didn't have very good stuff. He made some good pitches here and there to give us a chance and we were able to score some runs for him.”

Freshman Kevin Alexander (1-2) took the loss for the Owls. He worked five innings, allowing seven earned runs on 10 hits.

Unlike in many of the games this season, the Trojans were able to spread out their offensive production over the entire game. Instead of scoring in one big inning, the Trojans scored in six of their eight times up in the game.

Troy scored a single run in the first on a Ryan Ditthardt single, but failed to get more when Miles Hoyle hit into an inning-ending 1-2-3 double play. The Trojans added two more in the second, but it took a two-out double from Steven Felix after Adam Bryant hit into a 1-2-3 double play with the bases loaded and no outs.

FAU got a pair of runs back in the third when Dan Scheffler delivered a two-out, two-run double to make the Trojans pay for a throwing error that would have ended the inning. Troy, which came into the game having committed just 10 errors in 12 games, had four in the game on Sunday.

Troy scored a single run in the fourth when T.J. Rivera led off with a double and scored on a triple to center by Jake Sullivan, but left Sullivan stranded at third in the inning.

FAU took advantage in the fifth, getting a two-out, two-run double from Nick Delguidice to knot the score at 4-4.

Troy answered in the fifth. After Ditthardt and Blake Martz delivered back-to-back singles to open the inning, Hoyle tried, unsuccessfully, on the first to pitches he saw to bunt the runners into scoring position. After falling behind 0-2, Hoyle made up for his inability to get the bunt down by blasting a three-run homer to left, giving the Trojans a 7-4 lead.

FAU got a single run in the sixth on a Raymond Church homer and added another run in the eighth on Troy's fourth error, but Troy got two in the seventh on a triple by Daniel Peterson and one in the eighth on a single by Hoyle.

“We had a lot of big hits, especially when you consider how badly this team is struggling,” Pierce said. “We made a mental adjustment at the plate, and that is what turned things around. We talked about it and talked about it and they were able to make the change, and that is what I am most proud about.”

Ditthardt and Martz led Troy's 14-hit attack with three each. Hoyle had two hits and drove in four runs while Rivera added two hits.

FAU got two hits each from four players – Chase Vergason, Scheffler, Corey Keller and Church.

The Trojans are scheduled to play a pair of mid-week games against North Florida this week at Riddle-Pace Field. Troy's last two scheduled mid-week contests have been rained out. Tuesday's game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start while Wednesday's game is slated for 1 p.m.

“North Florida has a very good team that scores a lot of runs,” Pierce said. “They will be a very tough opponent for us this week.”

Following the series with North Florida the Trojans will make the long trip south to Miami next weekend for a three-game series at Florida International.