March 15, 2002

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. -The Miami University (8-3) baseball team played two games on Thursday, March 14, dropping the morning contest to Wagner 7-6, and rebounding with a 12-7 victory in the nightcap against Kansas State. Senior Russ Bayer upped his record to a perfect 3-0 with a complete-game victory against the Wildcats, while junior Mike Galloway was six-for-11 in the two games with four RBI.

Junior hurler Adam Keel started the Wagner contest for the RedHawks, and gave the Red and White a chance to win by pitching six innings allowing four runs, only two of them earned. The only runs that Miami scored for Keel were two in the top of the first frame, courtesy of a Galloway double and junior Michael Carlin's rocket to the Wagner shortstop that was booted, scoring Galloway.

The RedHawks found themselves clawing back from a 5-2 deficit entering the top of the eighth inning after freshman Jim Knytych relieved Keel in the seventh stanza. Galloway led off the eighth with his third hit of the game, an infield single to the shortstop. Two batters and two outs later Galloway stole second to set the stage for a Miami comeback. Junior Zach Schmidt singled to right field to put runners on first and third base. Freshman backstop John Slone paved the way to the plate for both Galloway and Schmidt with his third double of the season. A single down the left-field line from sophomore Josh Widlansky completed the comeback, scoring Slone and knotting the game at 5-5.

Junior Andi Scheidt knocked his fourth home run of the season in the top of the ninth inning to give the RedHawks their first lead since the first frame, 6-5. Miami's confidence was quickly deflated in the bottom half of the ninth inning as Wagner rallied to score two runs of senior Billy Kieninger, and steal the contest 7-6.

In the nightcap, Miami took a quick lead when junior David Cook took the first pitch of the game and directed it over the fence in center field to give the RedHawks an early 1-0 advantage. K-State roughed up southpaw Russ Bayer with seven runs in the first three innings, giving the Wildcats a 7-1 lead.

However, the RedHawks didn't quit as they scored atleast one run in each of the final six innings, while senior hurler Bayer blanked KSU in those innings. The momentum turned in Miami's favor when it rattled off four runs in the fourth frame. A run in the fifth brought the RedHawks within one of Kansas State at 7-6, thus setting the stage for Galloway in the sixth inning.

Schmidt led off the sixth inning with a single, while Galloway, who struck out in both of his two previous at bats, blasted his fifth dinger of the season over the fence in deep left-center field. The home run gave Miami its first lead since Cook's home run in the first inning and was all that Bayer needed to defeat Kansas State. Miami added four more insurance runs in the final three innings as Bayer shut down the KSU offense to give the RedHawks their eighth win of the season, 12-7.

The RedHawks play again this evening against Florida Atlantic at 7:00 p.m., and wrap up their spring break competition with a game tomorrow morning, March 16, against Manhattan at 10:00 a.m.

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