BOX SCORE (html)
TAMPA, Fla.-- The Seton Hall baseball team (0-4) fell to Kansas State (4-1) on Friday afternoon at the Yankee Player Development Complex in its first game of the Buckeye Classic. The Pirates were led by Casey Hines (West Milford, N.J.) and Bobby Dombrowski (Denville, N.J.), who each tallied two hits apiece. Seton Hall out-hit Kansas State, 7-3.
Kansas State jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Derek Bunker and Drew Biery started the inning off with consecutive base-on-balls, putting the runners at first and second. Byron Wiley followed up with a single that drove in Bunker and moved Biery to second. Biery and Wiley moved to second and third on a wild pitch, and after a strikeout, Nate Tenbrink was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Brett Scott drew a base-on-balls and Biery crossed the plate to give the Wildcats a 2-0 lead. Wiley scored the final run of the inning on a wild pitch.
Seton Hall cut the lead to two in the top of the second. With two outs, Hines singled down the right field line and scored on a Dombrowski double. However, Dombrowski was picked off to end the inning.
In the fifth inning, Kansas State scored a run to increase the Wildcats lead to 4-1. Eli Rumler doubled to left field and moved to third on a ground out. Rumler scored on an Adam Muenster groundout.
The Pirates answered back in the seventh, when John Walsh (Jersey City, N.J.) blasted solo homerun to cut the lead to 4-2. Seton Hall looked to mount a rally, when with one out, Hines singled. However, Kansas State turned a double play at the next at-bat to end the inning.
Seton Hall put a runner on base in the ninth with Dan McDonald (Rockaway, N.J.) singled, but two strikeouts ended the Pirates chances and fell 4-2.
Kansas State’s Brad Hutt earned the win, pitching 7.0 innings and striking out three. Dan Merklinger (West Orange, N.J.) was credited with the loss after pitching 5.0 innings and striking out six. Daniel Edwards registered the save.
The Pirates will face James Madison on Saturday, Feb. 24, in the second day of the Buckeye Classic. The teams will play a double-header with the first game starting at 1:00 p.m.
