University of North Florida
Lander
UNF sweeps DH from Lander
4/2/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 2, 2005
Box Score (Gm 1)
Box Score (Gm 2)
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The third-ranked North Florida baseball team combined to pound out 27 hits in a doubleheader sweep of 24th-ranked Lander on Saturday afternoon at Harmon Stadium, winning the Peach Belt games 8-5 and 11-1 to move into sole possession of first place atop the conference standings.
The most impressive performance for the Ospreys (26-9, 11-6 PBC) came in game two, when they manhandled Lander starting pitcher David Wilson - who had posted wins against the Ospreys in his last two starts against them. UNF scattered 11 hits and 10 earned runs in four innings against Wilson on Saturday, including home runs by Jon Skorupski and Sadry Café.
Wilson came into the game 6-1 with a 2.98 earned run average for the Bearcats (21-14, 8-8 PBC).
"We worked all week on (Wilson)," UNF head coach Dusty Rhodes said. "He is a tough guy out there, and we got after him early. You can't play around with a pitcher that good. We did a good job swinging the bats."
UNF tied the game 1-1 on Skorupski's second home run of the day in the bottom of the first inning in game two, then added three runs in the third, four in the fourth and two more in the fifth to finally knock Wilson out of the game. UNF collected 12 hits total, seven for extra bases.
Kyle Aylor and Josh Papelbon finished things off on the mound for UNF. Aylor (5-1) started and earned the win, allowing a run and three hits in five strong innings. Papelbon pitched two scoreless innings to end it.
In game one, Café was 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs and Skorupski added three hits, two RBIs and three runs scored. Ryan Amason (5-1) earned the win, despite allowing 10 hits and four runs in 5.1 innings. Papelbon earned his eighth save, pitching out a jam in the top of the ninth.
Skorupski was a combined 6-for-8 with two home runs, six RBIs and six runs scored in the two games, while Café was 6-for-8 with a home run, eight RBIs and two runs scored.
"Any time you can win a series, especially against a ranked team and a team that has been leading the conference all year, it is big," Rhodes said. "We've got to come back tomorrow and play one more."
The Ospreys improved to 12-3 against ranked teams this season with the sweep.
The squads will conclude their three-game series at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Game audio will be carried live on www.unfospreys.com.
