Baseball Beats Penn State in First Home Doubleheader of the Season

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February 20, 1999

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Junior right-handed pitcher Kevin Shroutstruck out 12 batters in five and two-thirds innings to propel theUniversity of Virginia to a 6-3 victory in the first end of a doubleheaderhere Saturday. The Cavaliers completed the sweep with a 4-3 win in thesecond game. With the wins, UVa evens its record at 4-4 on the season. PennState falls to 0-2.

Shrout (1-1) allowed just two hits and two walks on the afternoon.He yielded three runs, but all three were unearned. The 12 strike outs wasthe most by a Virginia pitcher this season – just one more than BrandonCreswell had last week against The Citadel – and was only two shy ofShrout’s career best.

The Cavaliers built a 5-1 lead through three innings, thanks to tworuns in the bottom of the first and a three-run third. Penn State scratcheda run off Shrout in the top of the second when Chris Netwall scored on aUVa error. After a Nittany Lion error in the fifth allowed another UVa runto score, Penn State put two runs on the board in the top of the sixth.

However, the UVa bullpen did its job to close the door. JohnMetzger pitch two and two-thirds scoreless innings, allowing two hits,three walks and striking out six. Tim LaVigne came in from shortstop withthe bases loaded and one out in the ninth and got Penn State’s three-holehitter Dan Beers to bounce back to the mound for an easy double play. Itwas LaVigne’s first save of the season.

LaVigne also had a good game at the plate, going 3-for-4 with anRBI. Jonathan Benick and Mark Rueffert both went 2-for-3 with two RBI,while David Stone also collected a pair of hits. Joe Puliafico had the onlyRBI for the Nittany Lions and two of their four hits. Dan Goebeler startedfor PSU and took the loss, going five innings and allowing six runs, threeearned, on 10 hits and a walk with three strike outs.

In the nightcap, Brandon Creswell went five and two-thirds andallowed one run on six hits with three walks and six strike outs to notchthe win for Virginia. Creswell (2-0) worked through troubled several timesto maintain the Cavalier lead. Penn State left nine runners on base in thesecond game, a seven-inning affair. Denny Chapman pitched the final inningand a third for his first save of the season.

UVa put a run on the board in the bottom of the second, only to seethe Nittany Lions tie the score in the top of the third. However, an RBIsingle by Benick and an RBI double by Rueffert – both with two outs – gavethe Cavaliers a 3-1 lead. The Wahoos tacked on another in the bottom of thesixth when an error by PSU second baseman Eric Spadt allowed Rueffert toscore.

That error proved to be costly as Lion first baseman Donnie Wrightblasted a two-run home run to right field with one out in the top of theseventh. It was not enough, though, as Chapman retired the next to battersin order to end the game.

Benick and Rueffert again mirrored each other, both going 2-for-3with a run scored and an RBI. Ryan Kalamaya added a couple of hits for theCavaliers and LaVigne notched an RBI. Michael Campo wetn 2-for-2 with a runand an RBI for the Lions to go along with Wright’s home run. Dan McCallstarted and lasted four innings for the Lions and was saddled with theloss, allowing three runs, two earned, on seven hits and a walk with sixstrike outs.

The two team will wrap up this three-game series here Sunday with asingle game at 1 p.m.

VIRGINIA 6, PENN STATE 3

Game 1PSU (0-1)   010 002 000 - 3  4 2UVa (3-4)   203 010 00x - 6 11 2

WP – Shrout (1-1). LP – Goebeler (0-1). Sv – LaVigne (1)Goebeler, Arnold (6) and Netwall; Shrout, Metzger (6), LaVigne (9) andRueffert.

VIRGINIA 4, PENN STATE 3

Game 2 (7  innings)PSU (0-2)   001 000 2 - 3 7 1UVa (4-4)   012 001 x - 4 9 1

WP – Creswell (2-0). LP – McCall (0-1). Sv – Chapman (1).McCall, Wager (5) and Puliafico; Creswell, Chapman (6) and Benick.