2008 Woodie Awards
Bills get steamrolled by visiting Boilermakers
Andy Pollock
Issue date: 3/23/06 Section: Sports
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The baseball team started off slow in a weekend series against Big 10 foe Purdue University, but gained momentum with a strong showing on Sunday afternoon. After dropping 7-1 and 4-1 contests on Friday and Saturday, the squad rebounded to post an impressive 6-5 victory at the Billiken Sports Center.
The Billikens, who have battled with offensive inconsistency for most of the season, found grooves just in time to salvage the final game of the series. With the victory on Sunday, the squad advanced to 8-9 on the season and will begin its inaugural season in the Atlantic 10 Conference after a Wednesday date with Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.
The Billikens entered Friday having won two of their last three contests. After Purdue's first two hitters reached base, junior pitcher Ryan Bird induced a line drive which junor Gilbert Marlowe turned into a double play. Bird gave up an RBI single before settling in and striking out the next hitter to end the inning. The Billikens answered in the bottom half of the first with a trio of singles from senior Johnny Sweeney, sophomore Greg Rodgers, and senior Tim Landy. Landy's single plated Sweeney and evened the score at 1-1.
Purdue plated two runs in the top of the second and never looked back. After the Boilermakers added runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, Bird's day on the mound came to an end. Freshman Corey Tyberendt came in for relief and allowed only one hit in just over two innings of work.
Though the Billikens forced the Boilermakers to leave 11 men on base, they also allowed Purdue to record 18 hits on the day. The Billikens squandered several late scoring opportunities and dropped the game by a score of 7-1. Bird absorbed the loss and fell to 2-3 on the season.
The Billikens returned to action on Saturday and put forth an inspiring effort that fell just short. Freshman pitcher Dave Sever was phenomenal, allowing only two runs, neither of which was earned. The Billikens were plagued by a porous defense that committed three errors on the game. The squad was put on its toes early as Sever allowed the first two batters to reach base. After forcing a fly ball out, the next hitter singled to load the bases with only one out. Sever worked his way out of the jam by inducing two fly balls to get out of the inning unscathed.
The Billikens, who have battled with offensive inconsistency for most of the season, found grooves just in time to salvage the final game of the series. With the victory on Sunday, the squad advanced to 8-9 on the season and will begin its inaugural season in the Atlantic 10 Conference after a Wednesday date with Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.
The Billikens entered Friday having won two of their last three contests. After Purdue's first two hitters reached base, junior pitcher Ryan Bird induced a line drive which junor Gilbert Marlowe turned into a double play. Bird gave up an RBI single before settling in and striking out the next hitter to end the inning. The Billikens answered in the bottom half of the first with a trio of singles from senior Johnny Sweeney, sophomore Greg Rodgers, and senior Tim Landy. Landy's single plated Sweeney and evened the score at 1-1.
Purdue plated two runs in the top of the second and never looked back. After the Boilermakers added runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, Bird's day on the mound came to an end. Freshman Corey Tyberendt came in for relief and allowed only one hit in just over two innings of work.
Though the Billikens forced the Boilermakers to leave 11 men on base, they also allowed Purdue to record 18 hits on the day. The Billikens squandered several late scoring opportunities and dropped the game by a score of 7-1. Bird absorbed the loss and fell to 2-3 on the season.
The Billikens returned to action on Saturday and put forth an inspiring effort that fell just short. Freshman pitcher Dave Sever was phenomenal, allowing only two runs, neither of which was earned. The Billikens were plagued by a porous defense that committed three errors on the game. The squad was put on its toes early as Sever allowed the first two batters to reach base. After forcing a fly ball out, the next hitter singled to load the bases with only one out. Sever worked his way out of the jam by inducing two fly balls to get out of the inning unscathed.