Michigan State University
Lehigh
MSU Baseball Downs Lehigh, 6-3
3/5/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 4, 2006
CLEARWATER, Fla. - Michigan State (1-3) baseball picked up its first victory of the season, and head coach David Grewe recorded his first collegiate win as the Spartans toppled Lehigh (4-2), 6-3, Saturday night at the Winning Inning College Classic in Clearwater, Fla. Senior right-hander Jeff Gerbe (1-1) earned the win on the mound, allowing just one run on six hits in 7.0 innings.
MSU struck early and often, building a 3-0 lead after one inning. Troy Krider got things started with a lead-off walk, followed by E.J. Daws' single. Kyle Day then stepped to the plate, zipping an RBI single to right field, scoring Krider. Adam Tripp recorded an RBI, scoring Daws, and Day accounted for the third run, crossing the plate on a wild pitch. The Spartans added a run in the second inning and extended the lead to 5-0 with a score in the sixth inning.
Having silenced the Mountain Hawks' offense for six innings, Gerbe finally gave up a run in the top of the seventh when Lehigh rattled off three-straight singles. In a jam with no outs, Gerbe came up big, getting the next two batters to hit into a double play and a groundout.
"Today was a great win for the entire ball club," Grewe said. "Every single guy on the team contributed to the win. It started with a great pitching performance from Jeff Gerbe, and the defense was strong behind him. All-in-all, the guys really showed up tonight to play."
Ryan Basham produced Michigan State's' final run in the bottom of the seventh inning, cranking a stand-up, RBI double to the wall in right field. Lehigh cut the lead to 6-3, with two runs in the eighth, but the MSU bullpen finished the game strong to give the Spartans their first win.
Krider was 2-for-3 at the plate for the Green and White, while Basham went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Joe Ercolano had the hot bat for Lehigh, going 3-for-4 on the night. Joe Matteo (1-1) took the loss on the Mountain Hawks, allowing five runs on nine hits in 5.2 innings.
MSU returns to action on Sunday, facing Sacred Heart at 2:30 p.m. before facing Lehigh again on Monday at 11 a.m.
