10-Run Eighth Inning Fuels Privateers Baseball Victory Over Pittsburgh

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NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans baseball team (8-2) took advantage of seven Pittsburgh errors and scored 10 runs in the eighth inning of a 13-6 victory on Saturday afternoon at Maestri Field at First NBC Ballpark. The Panthers dropped to 6-3 with the loss.
 
UNO collected five hits while the Panthers committed four of their seven errors in the deciding frame. Aaron Palmer drew a walk and Dakota Dean was hit by a pitch to start the rally. Hezekiah Randolph then roped a single on the first pitch to load the bases. Kyle Bracey followed with a single that drove in one run and an ensuing run which scored on an error.
 
Run generating base hits from Samuel Capielano, Preston Marsh, and Ryan Calloway followed to make the score 8-5. With the bases still loaded, Randolph hit a fly ball to center that was dropped by Aaron Schnurbusch allowing three more runs to score. In total, the Privateers sent 14 batters to the plate.
 
"We didn't play the cleanest game and it almost bit us in the tail. Our hitters were very passive early and I told them it's time to go. We told them they have to be aggressive and they can't get in disadvantage counts."
 
The game was relatively quiet on the scoreboard through the first five innings. Bracey knocked in two runs with a single in the first, but the game remained at 2-0 until the sixth when the Panthers got a two-run triple from Ron Sherman and an RBI sac bunt by Caleb Parry on a squeeze play. The Privateers tied the game at 3-3 in the seventh when Capielano reached on an error and came around to score on a wild pitch. Pittsburgh responded with two runs in the top of the eighth on RBI singles by Sherman and Matt Johnson.
 
Privateers starter, Riley Hodge went six innings and gave up three runs (two earned) with one walk and seven strikeouts. Hodge threw 110 pitches on the afternoon. Jarred Taylor picked up the win for UNO to move to 2-0. Keaton Brewer and Daniel Martinez also threw an inning each.
 
"Pittsburgh battled and they fouled off a lot of two-strike pitches," said Dean. "What we've harped on is we're giving up a lot of solid contact in 0-2 and 1-2 counts and we have to be better. There's no reason a pitcher should be giving up hard contact so we've just got to be better in making more quality pitches in advantage counts and trying to eliminate the two-strike hits other teams are getting on us."
 
Bracey and Preston Marsh each collected two hits on the day. Capielano scored twice in his return to the lineup and Dean scored three runs. Aaron Palmer scored twice despite being held without a hit in four at-bats.
 
Pittsburgh was led by Charles LeBlanc who went 3-for-5 with a triple and two runs. Sherman was 2-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs. Aaron Sandefur pitched six innings and gave up three runs (one earned) while walking one and striking out three.

The series closes on Sunday at 12 p.m.
 
Season tickets for the 2016 campaign are available for as low as $125 and single-game tickets start at $5. For additional information, contact the UNO Atheltics Ticket Office at (504) 280-GAME (4263) or log on to the internet at http://www.unoprivateers.com.
 
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