April 18, 2009
Box Score
ARLINGTON, VA - Thanks to a five-run third inning and a complete-game effort from Kevin Fuqua, La Salle Baseball ended its four-game losing streak with a 7-2 victory over George Washington in Atlantic 10 Conference action at Barcroft Field Saturday afternoon.
Fuqua went the distance despite allowing nine hits, two walks, and hitting two batters. However, he struck out a season-high seven batters in the season-long nine innings, surrendered just one extra base hit, and stranded 10 Colonials on base to win his team-high fourth game of 2009.
The Explorers left 14 men on in the victory, as they had base runners in every frame except the eighth. They left five on base through the first two innings, including the bases loaded in the second.
Breaking through in the third, TJ Chism put the first run on the board with an RBI single which plated John Malloy who doubled to lead off the frame. In all, Malloy went 4-for-6 and the double was his 15th of the year - fourth most in a single season at the school and his 41 career doubles are fifth all-time.
Three straight walks, the last by Marc Schoch, plated Chism, then Zack Feierstein laced a single through the left side to plate Justin Handler and Chris Umstead.
Speaking of that pair, Handler failed to record a hit, ending his career-long hitting streak at 14 games, while Umstead had two hits pushing his to 13 games, one behind the team-long for the season.
Tony Negrin, who also had a pair of hits in the game and scored twice - in the fifth and seventh innings, then brought in Schoch with a ground ball and La Salle led 5-0.
Fuqua would allow his first run of the game in the bottom of the third inning on a two-out single by Sean Rockey, scoring Brandon Gillette.
George Washington (17-21, 6-7 A-10) answered an Explorer run in the fifth inning - an RBI single by Jeff Flax - with another two-out RBI single by Tim Reeves which scored Chris Holland.
La Salle (14-19, 3-10 A-10) pushed another run across the plate in the seventh, as Chism drove in his second run of the day on a sacrifice fly.
Fuqua, who is now 4-3 this season, pitched a perfect eighth and ninth to pick up his first complete game of the season, his seventh of his career - which is tied for fourth all-time.
Just shy of completing his second season at La Salle, he is in position to move into several top 10 career categories at the school including - strikeouts (seven shy), innings pitched (19), games started (one), and wins (2).
The Explorers will try to win their second A-10 series of the year when they face George Washington in the final game of the series on Sunday at 1 PM.
