Tulane University
Pepperdine
Miscues Cost Baseball At Pepperdine
Feb 8, 2002 | Baseball
Feb. 8, 2002
MALIBU, Calif. - The Tulane University baseball team's late inning efforts of a year ago resurfaced in the 2002 season opener, but the Green Wave rally fell short as Pepperdine defeated the boys in Olive and Blue 9-7 Friday afternoon at Eddy C. Field Stadium.
Tulane out-hit the Waves 12-10, but a pair of errors and a passed ball killed the Green Wave's chances of taking a win on the West Coast. Both Tulane errors would up translating into runs, and a passed ball in the eighth provided the winning run in the loss.
Preseason Conference USA Player of the Year Michael Aubrey went 2-for-4 and reached base three times, and sophomore shortstop Anthony Giarratano had a single and drew a pair of walks, but it was not enough to overcome the opportune Pepperdine squad.
Releiver Joey Charron was saddled with the loss despite striking out two of the four batters he faced. Pepperdine's Jacob Barrack earned the win for the Waves out of the bullpen, and Derek Mills picked up his second save of the year with a scoreless ninth to seal the deal.
Pepperdine got on the board first in the second inning when left fielder Chris Kelly led off the frame with a double and came around to scored on a fielding error by freshman Tommy Manzella one at-bat later.
The Waves added another run in the bottom of the third on a leadoff home run by Ed Montague, but Tulane would get tie things up in the top of the fourth when catcher Scott Madden hit a two-out two-RBI through the left side to plate Michael Aubrey and Aaron Feldman who led off the inning with back-to-back singles.
It appeared as if starter Beau Richardson had settled into a rhythm after Tulane tied things up as he retired the first two batters of the fourth with relative ease, but Rock Mills, Steven Kleen and Nelson Carabello hit consecutive singles, including an RBI by Carabello to plate Mills. Montague walked to reload the bases, and shortstop Patrick Rooney would clear the bases with a three-RBI double to make it 6-2 in favor of Pepperdine.
Designated hitter Bryan Stelmack belted a towering home run over the left field screen in the sixth to cut the lead in half, but Pepperdine would retake a four-run lead in the seventh when Ty Harper hit an RBI single to centerfield which plated Jason Durbin from second to make it 7-4.
The Green Wave got a second lease on life in the eighth, though as the Green Wave turned three hits and a trio of Pepperdine miscues into four runs to tie the game. Feldman led off the inning with a base hit and defensive replacement Gerald Clark would get hit by a pitch two at-bats later. A groundout by Madden advanced the pair and pinch hitter Turner Brumby hit a two-RBI single up the middle to cut the lead to one.
Brumby advanced to second on an infield single by Jon Kaplan, and the pair advance a pair of bases on a wild pitch and a balk by Pepperdine reliever Jacob Barrack, and Barrack would throw another wild pitch which would allow Kaplan to score from third to tie the contest at 7-all.
The Waves would come right back in the bottom of the inning, though. Pepperdine put the first two batters on with a single and a hit-by-pitch, and the pair advanced a base on a sacrifice bunt by Carabello. In a strategic move to make any base a force play, head coach Rick Jones decided to intentionally walk pinch hitter Corey Brightwell, but Joey Charron's outside pitch to Madden slipped out of his glove and skipped back to the screen which allowed Rock Mills to put the Waves ahead 8-7.
Rooney gave Pepperdine an insurance run with a sacrifice fly to right which plated Kleen, but Tulane would not go away quietly. James Jurries belted a leadoff double in the ninth and Aubrey got beaned to put two runners on base with nobody out. But Mills came in and shut down the rally. Kleen robbed Clark of a base hit, snaring a hard-hit shot to third and turned a double play at the corners, and Stelmack grounded out to end the threat.
The Green Wave returns to action tomorrow when Tulane plays the second of a three-game series vs. the Waves at 2 p.m.
