Troy Downs UNO To Clinch Win No. 800 For Pierce

Friday, April 23

New Orleans, La.

8 pm

Troy University

New Orleans

Troy Downs UNO To Clinch Win No. 800 For Pierce

4/24/2010 4:00:00 AM | Baseball

NEW ORLEANS, La. -- The Troy Trojans got off to a good start in their weekend series, taking the first game of a weekend series at UNO 11-3.

The victory gives Troy head coach Bobby Pierce 800 career victories and evens the Trojans' season record at 19-19. Troy also improved to 6-10 in Sun Belt Conference play with the victory. The Privateers (10-27, 2-17), who are struggling in their final season as a member of the Sun Belt, dropped their seventh straight game and fell for the 12th time in their last 14.

The milestone win was not something Pierce was focused on coming into the game. In fact, he had no idea he was close until after the game when the team presented him with a game ball.

“It is quite an honor and I am glad to see this group get that done,” Pierce said. “Those types of milestones don't mean much to me, personally, but I am very happy. It makes you reflect back on all the great people I have been able to be associated with and all the great players, and to be in the game for as long as I have.”

Win No. 800 for Pierce was certainly not as easy to get as the final score might indicate. Troy starting pitcher Andrew Dickinson (5-2), coming off back-to-back complete game efforts and the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week award for last week, struggled from the very first inning.

“For the last two or three outings, Andrew had really good stuff, but tonight was not one of those nights,” Pierce said. “He gritted it out and gutted it out. He was in trouble many times, but pitched his way out of trouble many times.”

Dickinson allowed the leadoff hitter to reach base in five of his six innings of work and had to work with runners in scoring position in four innings. Four times he was able to get out of jams by recording a strikeout.

“He limited the damage very well for the amount of trouble he was in, especially with the way the wind was blowing out of the park. One big hit at one of those times he was in trouble and the game could have changed. He deserves a lot of credit for a gritty, gritty, tough, tough performance.”

His most difficult, and most impressive, inning was the fifth. With the Trojans holding to a 4-2 load, UNO got the first two runners on in the inning, the second on a sacrifice attempt that went bad for Troy when a throw to second was too late to get the runner.

With the tying runs on, Dickinson was able to strikeout the Sun Belt's leading home run hitter, and long-time Trojan killer, Nick Schwaner. A bloop single followed, bringing first Nolan Church and then Mike Petello, who both owned solo homers in the game, to the plate.

Dickinson struck them both out to get out of the jam.

“He was able to swing the momentum back to us when it was getting ready to swing to New Orleans,” Pierce said. “He reached back and made some great pitches. A couple of the hits he gave up were just flares, and then we created a jam for him on the bunt play by not getting the out at second base.

“He reached back that those critical times and not only got outs, but got their best hitters out, and not only got them out, but struck them out. He is not a strikeout type of guy, so that tells you what he was thinking at those critical moments, and what he got done at those critical moments.”

Dickinson finished his night after six innings of work, having allowed three runs on a career-high 11 hits. He tied season highs by allowing three walks, but also by posting eight strikeouts.

The Trojans, who had scored two runs in the second and two more in the fourth off UNO starter Kevin Berry (2-2), gave Dickinson some insurance by scoring three unearned runs in the sixth. A throwing error by Berry opened the door for Troy. Todd McRae followed with an RBI single and then senior Miles Hoyle, who was hitless in his last seven games coming into the night, blasted a two-run homer for a 7-2 Troy lead.

The Trojans added a single run in the seventh on a single by T.J. Rivera, and three in the eighth on a homer by Adam Bryant.

Five Troy players had two hits each in the game – Bryant, Chase Whitley, Rivera, McRae and Hoyle. Blake Martz blasted a tape-measure homer for Troy in the fourth.

Schwaner was one of four Privateers with two hits each in the game. He was joined by Petello, Matt Heltz and Tyler Sanford.

The Trojans will try to make it two straight on Saturday in a game that has already been affected by impending weather. The game was originally scheduled for a 4 p.m. start, but has been moved to 7 p.m. to try to avoid heavy thunderstorms expected to rake the New Orleans area.

Sophomore Tyler Ray (4-3) will take the mound for Troy on Saturday and will be looking to bounce back from two straight sub-par performances.

“We are looking for Tyler to rebound from a couple of outings where he wasn't as sharp as he needs to be. He put in a hard week of work this week and we are hopeful that he will have a good outing tomorrow.”