BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - Timely home runs and shut down pitching led the 25th-ranked Millersville Marauders to a doubleheader sweep of Bloomsburg Sunday afternoon. A five-run inning combined with
Cordell Shannon's complete game was enough for a 5-1 win in the opener, and a four-home-run performance including a grand slam from
Ben Snyder helped the Marauders to a 14-2 win in game two.
Millersville improved to 16-7 (3-1 PSAC East) with the sweep and won its 12th consecutive season series against Bloomsburg (10-6, 1-3 PSAC East).
GAME 1 RECAP (MILLERSVILLE 5, BLOOMSBURG 1)
• Shannon (5-1) won his fifth consecutive start and recorded a season-high nine strikeouts while tossing his first complete game of the season. He kept the Huskies scoreless until the sixth. Shannon scattered six hits while walking three.
• Millersville scored all five of its runs in the fourth.
Luke Trainer and
Jimmy Losh opened with back-to-back singles, and
Eric Callahan's RBI ground out broke the scoreless tie. An error on a dropped fly ball allowed one run to score.
Ben Harris extended the inning with a single, and
Cole Friese capped the scoring with a three-run home run to right center.
• A key moment for Shannon and the Marauders came in the bottom of the second when Bloomsburg loaded the bases with two outs. Shannon, however, escaped by getting leadoff hitter Cole Swiger to ground out. After that scare, Shannon retired eight consecutive hitters and did not give up another hit until one out into the sixth.
• Millersville totaled eight hits with all of them coming from different hitters.
GAME 2 RECAP (MILLERSVILLE 14, BLOOMSBURG 2)
• Bloomsburg loaded the bases in the third and the fourth innings but scored just one and stranded six on base in the two innings. Millersville blew the game open in the top of the fifth. With the score tied at 1-1,
Jimmy Cain drew a one-out walk,
Ben Harris doubled, and Friese was intentionally walked to load the bases. Bloomsburg starter Casey Cooperman got
Kaylor Kulina to foul out, but
Ben Snyder delivered for the Marauders, hitting a two-out grand slam.
• Snyder's bomb opened the floodgates. Millersville tacked on more in the sixth with a two-run double from Callahan. Callahan later scored when Friese beat out a bunt. The barrage continued in the seventh as Millersville hit three home runs and scored six in the inning. Callahan,
Luke Trainer and Friese homered and Harris drove in one with a double.
• Callahan went 3-for-4 and matched a career high with four RBIs. His homer was his third of the season. Friese's two home run day boosted his season total to a team-leading seven.
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Bobby Dorta made his first start of the season and gave up one run on three hits in 3 1/3 innings.
Christian Wingard and
Aidan Welch helped the Marauders out of the bases loaded situation in the fourth.
Tyler Yankosky fanned two in 1 1/3 innings.
John Turner struck out both batters he faced in closing out the sixth.
WHAT COACH JON SHEHAN HAD TO SAY
• "We did the little things today. We situationally hit very well. Callahan comes to mind. With runners on second and third and nobody out, he hit behind the runners twice. Those are the things we work hard on all year long, and the team did a great job executing today."
• "Getting out of bases loaded situations are momentum swingers. Just like yesterday--Bloomsburg scored a bunch of runs after they got out of a bases loaded jam. In game one, I was really impressed with Shannon. "He is a veteran and made some adjustments to get us out of a tough spot. He really saved our bullpen."
• "When Snyder hit the grand slam, he picked Kaylor up. This is what our offense has done all season. They pass the baton. When one guy has struggled, the next one picks him up. Snyder's got one up in the jet stream and knocked [Casey] Cooperman out of the game, and he had pitched really well up to that point."
• "We are hitting more home runs because our ability to swing at drivable pitches has gotten better. We are doing better with leverage counts. Our walks are up and our strikeouts are down. More discipline is going to help you out all the way around."
NOTES
• Shannon's complete game was the 10th of his career. He won his 27th career game, moving him into a three-way tie with Jim McDade and Brandon Miller for second all-time at Millersville. He trails Chris Murphy by wins. Shannon also ranks third in career innings pitched and needs just 11 strikeouts to tie Brandon Miller for third place.
• Millersville has hit two or more home runs four times. Millersville has hit more home runs through 23 games than it hit in all of 2018.
• Friese has reached base in all 23 games of the season.
• Snyder's grand slam was the first of his career and his 17th career home run, moving him into a tie with
Chas McCormick and Dan Stoltzfus for ninth all-time at Millersville.
• Millersville is now 40-9 against Bloomsburg under Shehan.
UP NEXT
• Millersville returns to Cooper Park on Friday, March 29 for a PSAC East doubleheader against Shippensburg. First pitch is at 1 p.m.
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