RUSTON, La. -- Old Dominion fell to LA Tech in game three of the weekend series, 12-0, on Sunday afternoon at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park to fall to 25-15 overall and 8-10 in Conference USA action. With the win, the Bulldogs moved to 23-13 overall and 10-8 in league play.
The Bulldogs once again jumped out early on the Monarchs, putting three runs on the board in the opening inning (3-0). LA Tech registered six hits, but left the bases loaded after Brent Diaz, the nine hole hitter, fouled out to Zach Rutherford. The Bulldogs increased their lead to 7-0, as LA Tech added three more runs to their total in the bottom of the third and one more in the bottom of the fourth.
Old Dominion struggled to find its offensive rhythm in the first five innings against starting pitcher Casey Sutton, as the team registered just four hits and did not have anyone reach second base. Kurt Sinnen broke the Monarchs’ drought with a standup double to left field with two out on the board in the top of the sixth. Connor Myers then followed with a single to left, but Sinnen was thrown out at home (7-5-2) to end ODU’s rally.
LA Tech added five more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and held the Monarchs scoreless in the top of the seventh, as the game was stopped after the seventh inning due to the C-USA 10-run rule on “getaway day.”
Sinnen and Jason McMurray paced ODU with two hits apiece, while Myers and Grey Finwood posted a hit as well. Adam Bainbridge suffered the loss after pitching 2.1 innings and allowing five runs on seven hits.
Sutton pitched 6.0 innings for LA Tech and picked up his fifth win of the season. He allowed six hits, no runs and fanned four. Sean Ullirch led LA Tech with a 3-for-4 showing with three runs scored. Four other Bulldogs record two hits, including Marshall Boggs who also added three RBIs to his stat line.
The Monarchs are back in action on Tuesday at Harbor Park against the defending National Champions Virginia at noon. Last season, the Baseball Monarchs picked up a 3-1 win over nationally ranked UVA before a crowd of 6,029 fans on April 28. The audience marked the largest collegiate baseball crowd in state history, smashing the previous record of 5,421 that was set on May 3, 2011 at the Richmond Diamond for a Virginia-VCU game.
Tickets for the April 26th matchup are available online at www.YNotTix.com. All seats are General Admission and priced at $10 each. Group tickets are also available for $7, while ODU voucher books are also available and can be used for this game. Tickets purchased in advance are only available online or through the ODU Ticket Office (Monday through Friday, 10am-6pm, Ted Constant Center, 757-683-4444). Tickets will be available on the day of the game at the Harbor Park Ticket Office.
ODU| 000 000 0 - 0 6 1
LA Tech| 303 105 X - 12 14 0
ODU| Adam Bainbridge, Jake Josephs (3), Brett Smith (4), Grayson Bailey (6), Morgan Maguire (6)
LA Tech| Casey Sutton, Adam Atkins (7)
Win| Casey Sutton (5-0)
Loss| Adam Bainbridge (2-3)
Save| None
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