March 28, 2007

Penguins Score Seven in the Eighth to Rally Past Malone, 7-4

    Struthers, Ohio -- Youngstown State rallied from four runs down with a seven-run eighth inning to win its fifth straight game in a 7-4 triumph over Malone on Wednesday afternoon at Cene Park.
    Playing in their home opener, the Penguins sent 11 men to the plate in the inning and took their first lead on redshirt freshman Tom Clayton's two-run double down the right field line.
    Clayton's double was one of four hits in the inning, and YSU benefited from two errors and three walks.
    With the win, the Penguins improved to 9-11 and won for the eighth time in their last nine games. Malone, which won the National Christian College Athletic Association national championship last season, dropped to 9-12.
    John Koehnlein finished 2-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games, and Erich Diedrich went 1-for-2 after appearing in the sixth inning as a pinch hitter to extend his hitting streak to 14 games.
    Cory Hornyak earned his first collegiate win, allowing one earned run on one hit in three innings of relief. Andy Svitak threw a scoreless ninth to earn his third save.
    Starter Chuck Schiffhauer allowed just two runs - one unearned - in five innings but left the game with the Penguins down 2-0.
    The Pioneers pushed a run across in the third when Mike Tozzi drew a leadoff walk, advanced on a sacrifice bunt and scored on Josh Spencer's one-out single.
    Tozzi hit a leadoff single and scored an unearned run in the fifth to make the score 2-0, and the Pioneers got two runs in the eighth to push ahead by four.
    Koehnlein sparked the rally with a leadoff single, and Diedrich walked with a full count to put two runners on. Brent Parks then reached when his potential double play ball was bobbled at second, and Ryan Dunlap drew a bases loaded walk for YSU's first run. The Penguins got two more runs when reliever Jake Booth threw Mike Turjanica's come-backer to the mound wide of the catcher, and Clayton's two-run double two batters later gave YSU the lead.
    Wachter followed with an RBI double to plate Clayton, and Koehnlein singled home Sean Lucas for a final insurance run.
    Malone starter Zach Winkhart allowed four unearned runs on six hits in seven innings before handing the game over to Booth, who was charged with the loss.
    The Penguins will travel to UIC for a three-game series with the Flames beginning Friday at 4:05 p.m. EDT.