SALEM, VA--The Roanoke College baseball team picked up its first two wins of the 2006 season, sweeping a double-header from Plattsburgh State (NY) University on Saturday afternoon. Roanoke won the first game 7-4 and then took the second contest 10-5. The Maroons are now 2-3 on the season while Plattsburgh opens its season with an 0-2 record. The Maroons will host Richard Stockton (NY) on Sunday morning in Salem. That double-header is scheduled to start at 11:00am.
Roanoke 7, Plattsburgh 4
The Maroons broke out on top in the bottom of the first inning. Justin Bradley led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a stolen base. The Maroons got their first run on a Brennan Thacker double to the gap in right. Thacker scored on a Nate Unroe single to give RC a 2-0 lead. Unroe went to second on a fielding error by the Cardinals. After Sean Sturgill singled, Unroe scored on a double steal.
Roanoke added runs in the bottom of the second on doubles from Shane Spikes, a ball that went off the wall in right field, and Bradley. Bradley would later score on Roanoke's second double-steal of the game and Robby Hoopes came home on an Unroe single through the left side of the infield, making the score 7-0.
The Cardinals scored single runs in the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh innings. The run in the sixth came off of four Maroon walks. In all, the Maroons walked eight batters in the contest.
Roanoke 10, Plattsburgh 5
The Cardinals got the scoring started in the second game, getting a first inning homer from Zach Welch.
With one out in the top of the second, Sean Sturgill and Brandon Coates reached on back-to-back infield singles. Clint Zimmerman then stepped to the plate and put the Maroons ahead with a deep home run over the leftfield fence. Two batters later the Maroons had their fourth run of the game and second homer of the inning, this one a solo shot from junior Shane Spikes.
The Cardinals got to within one run with single runs in the third and fourth innings. Roanoke got runs back in the bottom of the fourth. Zimmerman snuck in a hit in front of a diving Plattsburgh fielder and would later steal second. The junior then scored on a Bradley single to left. The Maroons added two more runs in the inning, both coming on a Nate Unroe single to left. The second run scored on a throwing error by the leftfielder.
A Robby Hoopes flyout to left in the sixth inning brought in Bradley from third. Bradley had reached on a two-base error to lead off the inning. With Brennan Thacker on second, the Maroons got their third homerun of the game, this one coming off the bat of senior Kirby Hamilton. That gave the Maroons a 10-5 lead.
