March 31, 2002

Box Score

OXFORD, Ohio - Georgia State's Josh Vandiver belted two home runs as the Panthers resisted a weekend sweep by the Miami University (12-8) baseball team with an 11-8 victory on Easter Sunday at McKie Field at Hayden Park. A five run seventh inning put the RedHawks away for good as Georgia State (15-13) went on the avoid the weekend sweep.

The RedHawks appeared to be on their way to a fourth straight victory by taking an early 2-0 lead over GSU in the first two innings. With freshman Sam Sellery (Carmel, Ind./Cathedral) sitting on first and one out, junior slugger Mike Galloway (St. Thomas, Ontario/Central Michigan) ripped a single down the right field line to move Sellery to third. Sellery crossed home to tally Miami's first run when junior Michael Carlin (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) hit an RBI single through the right side. The RedHawks scored their second run two frames later when Carlin scored off freshman Brian Canada's (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) single up the middle.

The lead disappeared as quick as it came for the RedHawks when Georgia State roughed up Miami sophomore Chad Reineke (Defiance, Ohio/Atersville) for three runs in the fourth stanza. The Panthers three runs were scored as a result of two dingers, a solo shot by Dustin Phillips and then a two-run blast to left field by Vandiver.

Miami scrounged for a run in the bottom of the fourth when Sellery hit a double down the left field line, scoring freshman Nolan McCue (Chicago, Ill./De La Salle) all the way from first base. Georgia State yanked starter Jonathan Craig in favor of Brett Strickland after the Sellery double.

Georgia State tallied three more runs in the fifth and sixth innings, to Miami's one run, to build a 6-5 advantage entering the final three frames. The wheels came off for the RedHawks in the seventh inning as the Panthers roughed Miami reliever junior Korey Kirkpatrick (Aurora, Ind./South Dearborn) for five runs. Most of the damage was done by a grand salami to left-center field off the aluminum of Vandiver, his second dinger of the game. Vandiver finished the contest with a season-high six RBI.

Junior David Cook (Columbus, Ohio/St. Francis DeSales) led off the seventh frame with a single up the middle, and advanced to third when freshman Tyler Tabler (Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller) singled up the middle and the center fielder misplayed the ball. Junior Zach Schmidt (Cincinnati, Ohio/McNicholas) singled home Cook to cut the deficit to 11-6. The RedHawks tallied their second run of the frame freshman John Slone (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Xavier) beat out a ground ball to the second baseman to avoid an inning-ending double play.

Strickland allowed one more run in the seventh but let the Red and White get no closer en route to his third victory of the season. In 5.2 innings of relief, Strickland threw 109 pitches plateward while striking out seven Miami batters.

After a 2-1 weekend against the Panthers Miami prepares for a midweek battle against Cincinnati on Tuesday, April 2, before opening up its conference action at Western Michigan on April 5-7.

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