Panthers open season 1-2 amid hectic weekend

A rainout made the goings rough for the Pitt baseball team on its opening weekend, forcing the… A rainout made the goings rough for the Pitt baseball team on its opening weekend, forcing the club to play three games in slightly more than 24 hours.

But after late-inning struggles on Saturday led to two losses, the Panthers captured their first win of the year Sunday at the IMICHotel INN-vitational in Conway, S.C.

Pitt dropped its first two contests Saturday against Virginia Tech and Maryland, but it defeated Virginia Tech in the finale for a 1-2 record in its first action of the young season.

The Panthers offense shone, tallying 20 runs throughout the three affairs. Pitt hit three home runs on the weekend, all in the same inning against Maryland.

Coach Joe Jordano was happy with his team’s first action of the year.

“I was pleased with our effort this weekend,” Jordano said. “Considering it was our first opportunity to get on a field, we played very well defensively and thought we swung the bats.

“Virginia Tech and Maryland are two solid [Atlantic Coast Conference] teams, and I believe [they] will fare well in their conference this year.”

The pitching struggled a bit and was unable to hold leads in the first two contests, starters Rob Brant, Nate Reed and Marshall transfer Brian Chrisman all pitched deep into the games and gained valuable experience for their arms.

“All of our pitchers were on pitch counts, and Reed, Brant and Chrisman all threw well in their starts,” Jordano said. “Our plan was to get our starters to or through the seventh [inning].”

Pitt was supposed to play one game each Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Rain on Friday washed out the initial game and forced the Panthers to play a double-header Saturday.

The Panthers have almost a week to prepare for their next battle, a three-game series against Youngstown State in Chillicothe, Ohio. The duo plays two games Saturday and wraps up the weekend with one Sunday.

Virginia Tech 7, Pitt 3

Pitt got on the board in a hurry against the Hokies in the first battle between the clubs.

Left fielder Sean Conley ripped a double to lead off the bottom of the first inning, setting the stage for a two-run frame. Senior Dan Williams walked, and freshman Joe Leonard smacked a double for his first two collegiate RBIs, giving Pitt a 2-0 lead.

Reed started hot for the Panthers, zipping through the first two innings. He got into trouble in the third though, giving up a home run to the Hokies’ Steve Bumbry. That tied the game at 2-2.

The game stayed deadlocked until Virginia Tech broke it open in the sixth. Matt Hacker hit a solo home run, and four runs crossed the plate in the inning for a 6-2 Hokie advantage.

Virginia Tech added an insurance run in the seventh.

Williams delivered an RBI in the eighth, knocking home shortstop Danny Lopez with a double, but the Panthers could get no closer.

Reed struck out four batters and gave up seven earned runs in eight innings.

Maryland 10, Pitt 5

Saturday’s second contest packed a powerful offensive punch, but Pitt again failed to take advantage of an early lead.

Conley started the game with a leadoff home run and was followed with a similar blast by Lopez one batter later. The long ball was the first of Lopez’s career.

After one out, Williams connected for a homer of his own, pushing the Panthers ahead, 3-0.

In the third, first baseman Morgan Kielty hit a single to right, scoring Lopez. But the wheels started falling off after that.

Maryland scored 10 unanswered runs between the fourth and eighth innings. Brant lasted five and 1/3 innings and was credited with the loss after giving up five runs, four earned. Brant tallied seven strikeouts.

Pinch-runner Matt Litzinger scored to cut the deficit to 10-5 after John Schultz reached on an error in the top of the ninth, but Conley grounded out to end the game.

Pitt 12, Virginia Tech 8

In his first game for Pitt, Chrisman pulled through for the Panthers, striking out nine Hokies and giving up seven hits in six innings as Pitt captured its first win of the campaign.

This affair also started out with a bang. The teams combined for six runs in the first inning, with Pitt scoring three in the top half and Virginia Tech responding to draw even in the bottom half.

This time, Pitt held steady and brought in runs in bunches. The Panthers scored eight runs over the next four innings to grab an 11-3 lead after five.

The Hokies added two unearned runs in the sixth to pull within 11-5, chasing Chrisman from the game.

The squads traded runs in the eighth inning, and the Hokies’ Michael Seaborn hit a two-run home run off of freshman Cole Taylor in the ninth, but Virginia Tech couldn’t complete the comeback.

“We were up early in all three games,” Jordano said. “But today we took it through the entire game.”