Panthers zip up competition in cold weather, win 4-2

On a day in which one would expect to see men in football helmets and pads rather than… On a day in which one would expect to see men in football helmets and pads rather than baseball hats and gloves, the Pitt Panthers earned a milestone win.

With temperatures hovering around 40 degrees for most of the afternoon, Pitt and Akron played 14 grueling innings to decide the victor.

The Panthers opened the game impressively. In the top of the first inning, right fielder Peter Parise doubled into right-center field off Akron starter Billy McKinney. Catcher Morgan Kielty hit a double into right field in the following at bat to bring Parise home for the 1-0 lead.

The score remained until the top of the third inning. Center fielder Jordan Herr led off the inning with a triple into right field. Leadoff man Sean Conley rolled a sacrifice groundout to second base, plating Herr to give Pitt a 2-0 advantage.

Akron responded quickly. In the bottom of the fourth, center fielder Charlie Lenhard ripped a double down the left-field line, one of his four hits on the day. The following batter, third baseman Vince Chiera, singled into the hole at shortstop. Dan Lopez attempted to make a spectacular play by throwing Chiera out, but his throw sailed wildly over first base allowing Lenhard to score and Chiera to advance to second base.

Pitt’s starting pitcher, Ryan Dunford, was removed from the game after six innings of spectacular work. Dunford allowed only five hits and no earned runs while striking out four.

Mike Wood came on in relief of Dunford in the seventh inning. Wood immediately worked into trouble. Akron’s designated hitter, John Turk, began the inning by singling through the middle. Chiera laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Turk to second base.

The next batter, Scott Gunn, hit a grounder to second baseman Brian Muldowney, but first baseman Seth Button was unable to handle his throw. The error allowed runners on first and third with only one out.

Brett Savage made the error hurt with a single into left field, tying the game at two. Wood walked the ensuing batter to load the bases and it seemed as if the Zips might break the game open. Wood, however, struck out second baseman Kevin Haas and induced a pop fly to right field from catcher Kurt Davidson to end the scoring threat.

Pitt nearly answered in the eighth when Button led off the inning with a single and advanced all the way to third in the following two at-bats. With two outs, however, Dan Williams struck out swinging and the game remained tied.

In the 11th frame, Conley was ejected for arguing a call at first base. Senior Rob Brant replaced Conley on the field. While it seemed insignificant at the time, this would ultimately prove to be a huge turn of events for the Panthers.

Neither team put together any near-scoring opportunities until the 14th inning. Dan Lopez began the top of frame with a single to right field. Jordan Herr followed with a bunt single and both runners advanced an extra base on a throwing error by the Akron catcher.

With runners on second and third, Brant stepped to the plate for his first at bat of the day. Brant slapped a single into right field, bringing in the go-ahead run and advancing Herr to third base. Parise followed with a fielder’s choice to the shortstop, plating Herr and giving the Panthers some breathing room heading into the bottom of the inning.

Kyle Landis, the Big East leader in ERA, came in to close out the game for Pitt. In typical fashion, Landis made quick work of the Zips, allowing only one baserunner.

With the win, Pitt improved to 14-14 on the season. It is the first time this season the Panthers have reached .500. Meanwhile, Akron fell to 14-9.

Yesterday’s contest with cross-city rival Duquesne was canceled because of projected poor weather. The Panthers will begin a three-game series with St. John’s on Friday.

The Red Storm are currently third in the Big East with a 6-3 conference record and a 16-11 overall record.