Friday, April 15, 2005

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Apr. 15, 2005) - East Tennessee State senior catcher Caleb Moore (Knoxville, Tenn.) hit a grand slam in his second-consecutive game and junior righty Jeremy Hall (Gray, Tenn.) was dominant in winning his fourth-straight start as the Bucs defeated Wofford, 14-2 Friday night from Cardinal Park in Johnson City, Tenn.

            The Bucs (19-10, 8-8 Southern Conference) took the lead early with three runs in the bottom of the first. Senior second baseman Nick Crowe (Johnson City, Tenn.) led off the game with a single to right and scored as the next batter, junior right fielder Shane Byrne (Johnson City, Tenn.) tripled to center. Moore then followed with an RBI single up the middle and later crossed the plate on a groundout by junior first baseman Blake Church (Roswell, Ga.)

            ETSU took control of the game with five runs in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman third baseman Anthony Russell (Waldorf, Md.) hit an RBI double and Crowe drove in a run as he hit into a fielder's choice with one out. With two outs in the inning, Byrne hit a two-run single and Moore followed with another RBI single. That hit was Moore's 200^th of his ETSU career, only the second player to accomplish the feat in school history. It was the second accolade of the week for Moore, as he set the ETSU career RBI record Wednesday against Tennessee Tech.

            Wofford (13-24, 3-13 SoCon) got on the board with two runs in the top of the fifth. Scott Holloway walked to lead off the inning and crossed the plate on a subsequent triple by Zach Pittman. Pittman would score as Anthony DiNardo reached on an error.    

            East Tennessee State plated another run in the bottom of the fifth as Church came in from third on a balk.

            The Bucs had another big inning in the bottom of the seventh, scoring five more runs. With one out, Russell hit a towering home run over the centerfield wall, his fourth of the season. After a single by junior left fielder Josiah Glafenhein (Knoxville, Tenn.), and consecutive walks by Crowe and Byrne, Moore belted his grand slam over the left field wall.       

Hall (7-1) was tremendous on the hill again for the Bucs, allowing two runs on four hits while walking two and tying a career-high with 11 strikeouts. Senior righty Trevor Smith (Newport, Tenn.) was excellent in relief, pitching the final two frames and giving up just one hit and striking out four.

            Jesse Cole (2-4) was charged with the loss for the Terriers, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on 11 hits in four innings of work.

            Moore led the Bucs at the plate, going 4-for-5 with two runs scored and six RBIs. With 10 homers and 49 RBIs through 29 games this season, Moore has already surpassed his numbers from his 2004 All-America campaign.

            Byrne went 3-for-3 with three runs scored and three RBIs in the win while Russell was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs.

            Pittman was 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI for Wofford while Shane Kirkley was 2-for-4 on the evening.