Box Score
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PHILADELPHIA – Senior Ryan Donohue and four La Salle relievers combined for only one unearned run while stranding 13 VCU baserunners in a 3-1 Explorer victory on Friday afternoon at Hank DeVincent Field. Senior Dan Klem, sophomore Kevin Conroy, and sophomore Mark Williams each registered two-hit days at the plate while senior Pat Christensen threw two scoreless innings in relief to pick up his ninth save of the season.

The Explorers improved to 19-20 (12-4 A-10) with the victory while the Rams dipped to 20-20 (5-8 A-10).

Klem (2-4, run) led off the bottom of the first with a double to left center and scored on a Kevin Conroy sacrifice fly to center field. The Blue and Gold added another run in the second when junior George Smith, Jr. (1-3, RBI) roped a 3-2 pitch to plate Williams, who led off the frame with a single.

VCU got a run back in the third, when Donohue fumbled a flip from Williams with two outs and a runner on third as the Rams cut the lead to 2-1.

That score remained until the bottom of the sixth, when the Explorers added an insurance run. Williams clubbed a 1-1 pitch down the left field line for a double, scoring Conroy, who got aboard with a one out single.

Donohue threw five innings on the bump, escaping a six walk outing with only one unearned run. Donohue evened his record to 3-3 on the season with the credited win. Freshman Austin Clark and junior Dominic Sgroi combined for two-thirds of an inning before handing the ball to sophomore Adam Cherry, who threw 1.1 scoreless innings to get the ball to Christensen in the eighth.

Christensen worked his way out of a bases-loaded, one out situation in the eighth and breezed through the VCU attack in the ninth to earn his ninth save of the season. The senior struck out four Rams in his two-inning stint.

VCU starting pitcher Heath Dwyer went the distance, tossing eight innings of three-run ball while striking out three and walking one. Dwyer's record dipped to 5-5 with the defeat.

The Explorers and Rams will clash again tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m. Junior southpaw Shawn O'Neill will toe the slab for La Salle and will be opposed by VCU's Ryan Farrar.