March 15, 2008 | Box Score

Penguins Rally to Defeat Xavier 8-6 in 12 Innings

    Cincinnati -- Down six after two innings, Youngstown State scored the final eight runs of the game and had four relievers combine to throw 10 scoreless innings en route to a 8-6 victory over Xavier on Saturday afternoon.
    C.J. Morris and Joe Iacobcci homered for YSU, and David Leon hit an eventual game-winning two-run double in the 12th inning. Reliever Eric Marzec did not allow a run and surrendered just one hit in the final five innings to earn his first win.
    YSU (3-8) defeated Xavier (3-8) for the second straight day and improved to 3-2 this week.
    The Penguins stranded only four runners the entire game, and they posted at least nine hits for the third straight game with 11.
    Xavier scored five runs on five hits and two errors off of YSU starter Adam Kalafos in the first inning, but it was only able to score one more run and record three more hits the rest of the game.
    "That first inning was the worst we played all year," head coach Rich Pasquale said. "After the third out, I grabbed everyone and said not to panic. We just needed to stick to our plan and everything would be fine."
    "I keep telling the guys that these games are like 15-round heavyweight bouts."
    After Kalafos walked the first batter in the second, freshman lefty Cody Dearth allowed an RBI double that made the score 6-0. After that, Dearth did not allow another hit, walked two and struck out four in 4.1 innings.
    Morris got the offense going in the third with his first career home run, and the Penguins added two more runs after there were two outs. Leon walked and went to third on Josh Page's double. Anthony Porter then ripped a two-run single to right to make the score 6-3.
    "To be able to get three in the third was big because it made it a game again," Pasquale said. "We just kept saying let's win this inning."
    YSU got a run across in the fourth when Tom Clayton scored on Dustin Wachter's groundout, and Jason Reitenbach's run on a double-play groundout in the sixth got the margin to one.
    Iacobucci's pinch hit homer in the eighth tied the score at 6-6, and Marzec took the mound in the bottom half to start his scoreless streak.
    The Musketeers had a chance to win it in the bottom of the 11th when an error and single put runners at the corners with one out. Marzec got No. 9 hitter Adam Pasano to foul out and struck out Steve Brown to end the inning.
    Wachter reached on an error to start the 12th, and Morris followed with a double down the left field line. After reliever Jordan Conley struck out Mike Turjanica, Leon ripped his two-run double to left.
    Morris appeared mostly as a defensive substitute a year ago up the middle of the infield. He has started the last two games in right field, and he already has five more hits this season than he did last year as a freshman.
    "C.J. is just being a great baseball player for us," Pasquale said. "He's running everything down in right, and he's gotten some big hits. He's doing everything we're asking him to do."
    The Penguins and Musketeers will play Sunday at noon in the finale of their four-game series.