June 5, 2005

Box Score

AUSTIN, Texas - The Miami University baseball team's (45-18) season came to an end on Sunday afternoon with a 12-5 loss to the host University of Texas Longhorns in the NCAA Regional Semifinal. Miami finished the season with 45 wins, tying the school record achieved by the 1977 team.

Texas took an early 1-0 lead in the top half of the second inning on a pair of hits sandwiched around a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt. The leadoff batter of the inning slapped a single to center and advanced to second on the bunt before coming around to score on a groundball up the middle with one out.

The Longhorns added a single tally in the third, an unearned run that scored on a fielding error by Miami third baseman Brian Canada (Fishers, Ind.), and then added two more runs in the fourth to take a 4-0 lead.

Sophomore Brandon Hillier (Hinsdale, Ill.) put Miami on the board when he cashed in classmate Ryne Robinson (Toledo, Ohio) from third with a groundball to first. Robinson led off the inning with a triple to right centerfield, his eighth of the season, which broke Mark Naehring's 28-year old Miami record for triples in a season.

A two-run home run to left centerfield by Texas' David Maroul with one out in the top of the sixth put the Longhorns on top 6-1. It was Maroul's sixth home run in the last 13 games. Another run came in to score with two outs in the inning on a triple to left by Drew Stubbs.

Miami junior Geoff Orr (Orland Park, Ill.) belted his career-high ninth home run with two runners on and two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning to draw the RedHawks to within three runs at 7-4.

Texas got one of those runs back in the top of the seventh after Chance Wheeless, who tripled to lead off the inning, came in to score when Will Crouch's dribbler to first base gripped the turf and changed directions, allowing the ball to elude Miami first baseman Paul Frietch (Cincinnati, Ohio).

Freshman righthander John Ely (Homewood, Ill.) pitched into the eight inning and recorded the first out before giving way to classmate Connor Graham (Bowling Green, Ohio). Ely tossed 7.1 innings and allowed eight runs on 10 hits while striking out two.

Miami cut into Texas' 8-4 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning as junior Jon Franzese (Barrington, Ill.) doubled to lead off the inning and came around to score on a single up the middle by Frietch.

The Longhorns added to their 8-5 lead with four runs in the top of the ninth, finishing the scoring at 12-5.

Ely was tagged with the loss, dropping his record to 10-1 while Adrian Alaniz went the distance for Texas, allowing just seven hits while striking out nine and improved to 5-3.

Notes: SO Ryne Robinson tripled leading off the bottom of the fourth inning, his eighth of the season, setting Miami's single-season record ... SR Paul Frietch extended his hitting streak to 16 games with an RBI-single in the eighth inning ... Miami's 45 wins are the most in head coach Tracy Smith's nine-year tenure.

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