GAME ONE BOX | GAME TWO BOX
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Columbia baseball team split a doubleheader Friday at Bucknell, dropping the opener, 2-1, before bouncing back with a 3-1 victory in the second game. The victory gave the Lions 28 wins on the year, matching the program record for wins in a season.
GAME ONE RECAP
Columbia jumped out to an early 1-0 lead with a top of the first run, but two late-inning runs from the Bison gave Bucknell a 2-1 victory in the opener of the weekend series. David Speer went seven innings and struck out six, allowing just two hits and one run, earning the no decision for the Lions. Mike Castellani earned the win in relief for Bucknell.
It took just two batters for the Lions to get on the board, as Will Savage led off with a double to left and then scored in the next at bat when Jordan Serena knocked a single to left.
The next five frames passed without either team plating a run, as Speer limited the Bucknell offense, not allowing a base runner past second in the first five innings.
Bucknell finally broke through in the sixth frame with a single run on an error to tie the ball game at 1-1. The game-winning run for the Bison came in the bottom of the eighth. With the bases loaded and two outs, designated hitter Jon Mayer slapped a single to center, scoring Brett Smith.
Serena led the Columbia offense with two hits and a walk, while Savage also tallied a pair of hits. Speer and George Thanopoulos combined to limit Bucknell to just four hits, and just the one RBI.
GAME TWO RECAP
The Lions jumped out to an early lead with three runs in the first three frames, taking the nightcap Friday, 3-1. Offensively, Savage reached base five times, all via bases on balls, while Serena, Aaron Silbar and Gus Craig each had two hits.
Similar to game one, the first inning favored the Lions, as Robb Paller and Silbar each drove in a run to give Columbia a 2-0 lead. A Savage walk and Serena single kicked off the inning. Savage moved up to third on a wild pitch and then scored two batters later on Paller's sacrifice fly to right field. Serena then came in to score on Silbar's base hit out to center field.
The long ball provided the Lions with their third run in the third frame. Craig blasted his team-leading sixth homer of the season to center to extend the Lions' lead to three runs.
Columbia starter Kevin Roy and reliever Adam Cline combined to allow just two hits through the first seven innings, but two hits and a hit by pitch in the eighth led to Bucknell scoring one run. With runners on first and second and two down, Joe Ogren dropped a single into left center to plate Greg Wasikowski, cutting the deficit to two runs.
The tally in the eighth would be the only run for the Bison, as Cline came back out for his third inning of relief and got the first three batters he saw out, including a strikeout to cap the win.
Roy earned his sixth win of the season, while the save gave Cline a team-leading three on the year.
Columbia and Bucknell are back on the field for the rubber match in the series tomorrow at noon.
