Box Score MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - Catholic baseball scored 11 runs in the final three innings of Thursday afternoon's contest to earn an 11-2 win over Coast Guard, the team's fifth straight victory.
Nine different Cardinals recorded a hit while Danny Fitzgerald and Cormac Terry were stellar on the bump to help Catholic remain unbeaten in Myrtle Beach this week.
After the scoreboard read all zeroes entering the bottom of the sixth inning, Coast Guard got the scoring started with an RBI single from Greg Boland after Blake Carroll singled and advanced to second on a balk.
Catholic struck back in the top of the seventh, scoring three to take the lead. Joe Marini led off the inning with a single to center, moving up to second on a Jesse Lacefield single. Matthew Fisher reached on an error to load up the bases and the first Cardinal run came via a passed ball as Marini touched home plate to tie the game at 1-1. Pinch-hitting for Derek Zelesnick, Steve Thomas singled to center, scoring Lacefield and Fisher to give Catholic a 3-1 advantage.
The Bears got one back off of Fitzgerald in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI single from Justin Stasiak, but Fitzgerald struck out the last batter he faced, his eighth of the contest, to keep it a 3-2 game.
Lucas Malave gave the run right back to Catholic, leading off the eighth inning with a solo shot to left field, his second blast of the season. Marini scored on a double to center from Fisher and the Catholic lead grew to 5-2.
Terry entered in the bottom of the eighth, retiring the Bears in order to hold onto a three-run lead before the Catholic bats blew up in the ninth to provide some extra insurance.
Ben Nardi led the inning off with a double to center, scoring on an RBI single from Malave. Lacefield brought in Malave with a sacrifice fly to center, making it 7-2. Justin McCarthy brought home the eighth run of the game for Catholic, scoring Marini with an RBI single to right. Zach Burton roped his second double of the game, scoring Fisher to make it 9-2. Finally, Dante Pozzi brought in two more runs with a double to left, capping off an 11-2 win.
Fitzgerald scattered five hits across seven innings to earn his first win of the season while Terry pitched a pair of scoreless innings to earn his first save of the year.
The Cardinals will face Johnson & Wales tomorrow afternoon in their fourth contest at the Ripken Experience before closing out the week on Saturday morning vs. Bridgewater State.
