Rhode Island Starters
DePino (3B), Notarangelo (LF), Moroney (SS), Hopko (DH), Perron (1B), Genther (RF), Butler (C), Penney (2B), Medina (C), Urena (P)
Eastern Kentucky Starters
Nunnally (CF), Ott (1B), Mendez (DH), Alana (2B), Scearce (LF), Shaffer (C), Groeneveld (RF), Bejarano (SS), Adrianza (3B), Walton (P)
How it Happened
Rhode Island Baseball hung a pair of key crooked numbers late in the game to take down Eastern Kentucky 15-3 on Friday night at Earle Combs Stadium.
Tied at 1-1, Rhody (5-8) put up five runs in the top of the fifth to grab its first lead of the series.
Nic Notarangelo got the scoring started when he doubled to left center to drive in a pair of runs before a Colonel miscue and a sac fly put the team out in front, 6-1.
While Rhode Island was working to gain rhythm on offense, starting pitcher
Jeremy Urena held the hosts in check. After allowing one run on a sac fly in the opening frame, the junior shut out Eastern Kentucky (0-13) for the next five innings.
Following a seventh inning that saw the Rams tack on a run and EKU score twice, URI exploded for an eight-run eighth to put the game out of reach. Another miscue by the Colonels as well as a pair of bases-loaded walks accounted for three of the runs, while
Eric Genther,
Anthony DePino and
Ryan Henschel cranked out hits to plate the additional five scores.
With the run-rule in play, EKU had one final chance to prolong the evening but
Zach Morris delivered from the bullpen and retired all three batters he faced.
Inside the Box Score
- Junior Jeremy Urena pitched a quality start en route to earning his second win of the year (2-0).
- In 7.0 innings, he scattered five hits while allowing three runs. Urena fanned three Colonels and issued as many walks.
- Senior Eric Genther led the offense, going 3-for-5 at the plate with four RBI.
- Graduate student Nic Notarangelo was the only other Ram with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI and two runs scored.
- Freshman Adonis Medina was 1-for-3 at the plate with two RBI. He also scored two runs.
- Both redshirt junior Ryan King and freshman Ryan Thompson came in as pinch-hitters.
- Redshirt sophomore Ryan Henschel came in as a pinch-runner for the DH position and later got a hit in his lone plate appearance.
- Sophomore Zach Morris struck out one batter in his scoreless eighth inning.
- Rhode Island out-hit the Colonels, 11-5.
- Of the 13 games URI has played this year, the team now has 10+ hits in eight of them.
- Additionally, Rhody has now score double-digit runs in seven outings.
- The three earned runs allowed by the pitching staff are the second-lowest of the year. Rhody did not give up any earned runs in a narrow 1–0 loss to No. 11 Oregon back on Feb. 22.
Up Next
The series will contine with a 7 p.m. game on Saturday, March 8.