By Staff
ECU Sports Information
NEW ORLEANS, La. — Ryan Tousley went 5-for-5 with four RBI including a two-run home run in the seventh inning to help East Carolina rally from five runs down to take game three against Tulane 11-7 Sunday afternoon at Zephyr Field.
Trailing by five runs in the seventh frame, ECU (21-8, 4-2) scored six runs, all with two-outs, to take an 8-7 lead. Ryan Wood drew a one-out walk, advanced to second on Jamie Ray’s single up the middle then moved on to third on David Forbes’ fly out to right. Harrison Eldridge singled through the right side scoring Wood and closing the books on Tulane (22-8, 5-1) starter Brandon Gomes. Dale Mollenhauer followed with another single, this time to left scoring Ray and moving Eldridge to third. Corey Kemp kept the inning going with a two-out 2 RBI single to left putting the score to 7-6 in favor of Tulane. Tousley sent a Daniel Latham fastball over the right field wall to give the Pirates their first lead since the first inning.
Jason Neitz picked up his third win of the season after working 2 2/3 innings were he allowed two hits with one strikeout. Pirate starter Josh Dowdy went 3 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on five hits with two strikeouts. Shane Mathews made his 19th appearance on the season in the fourth inning when he came in with the bases loaded and one out to hold off Tulane. Mathews lasted 2 1/3 innings gave up five runs on three hits with three walks before giving way to Jason Neitz in the sixth. Brett Butts collected his first save of the season after shutting down the Wave in the bottom of the ninth.
Latham dropped to 2-1 on the season after blowing his first save of the season. He lasted just one inning, gave up four runs on five hits. Gomes went 6 2/3 innings, allowed five runs on ten hits with three strikeouts.
ECU drew first blood for the third time in the series when Eldridge scored on Kemp’s groundout to short making the score 1-0. Eldridge roped a double down the right field line then moved to third on Mollenhauer’s sac bunt.
Tulane answered in the bottom of the first plating a pair of runs to make the score 2-1. Nate Simon led off with a single through the right side, advanced to second on Anthony Scelfo’s double to right field and then trotted home on a balk by Dowdy for the Green Wave’s first run. Cat Everett drove in the second run on a sac fly to left scoring Scelfo.
The Green Wave broke the game open in the fifth frame when they put three more runs up on the board to push their lead to 5-1. Johnny Weiss walked to start the inning, then moved to second on a sac bunt by Simon then advanced to third on a Scelfo intentionally pass to load the bases. Second baseman Brad Emaus singled to left scoring Weiss and Scelfo. Guidry’s sac fly to left plated another run capping the scoring at 5-1.
Ryan Tousley’s RBI double to right center scored Mollenhauer to draw within three, 5-2. Mollenhauer singled with one out on a bunt and advanced to second on a Gomes wild pitch.
Nate Simon put the Green Wave up 7-2 on a two-run shot to center field in the bottom of the sixth inning.
The Pirates tacked on three more runs in the top of the eighth, all coming with two-outs, to take a commanding 11-7 lead. David Forbes doubled down the right field line with one-out before be ran for by Drew Schieber. Eldridge advanced Schieber to third on a ground out then Mollenhauer drove him in with his fourth base knock of the afternoon to right. Kemp doubled down the left field line scoring Mollenhauer and Tousley cranked out his fifth hit of the contest a single to left plating Kemp.
Offensively the Pirates had five batters with multiple hits. Tousley collected his first five-hit game of his career, Mollenhauer banged out four hits, while Eldridge, Kemp and Wood each had two.
The Pirates will be back in action on Wednesday April 4th when they travel to Raleigh, N.C. to face N.C. State at 6 p.m.