University of Houston
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN
Baseball Rolls to 15-6 Win over SFA on Tuesday
2/6/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 6, 2007
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HOUSTON - Five different players recorded at least two hits as the University of Houston baseball team rolled to a 15-6 win over Stephen F. Austin in the 2007 season opener at Cougar Field.
The Cougars (1-0) recorded at least two runs in four of the first five innings, including a nine-spot in the third inning to break open a close game. Senior outfielder Jake Stewart scored three runs and blasted a grand slam in the third inning to lead the Cougar offense. It was the first Cougar grand slam since Dustin Kingsbury launched one at Cincinnati in April 2005.
Senior first baseman Josh Stirneman batted 2-for-4 with a double, two runs and two RBIs, while sophomore catcher Luis Flores went 3-for-4 with two runs, a homer and three RBIs.
Junior shortstop Ryan Lormand went 2-for-4 with three runs and a double, while sophomore DH Jimmy Cesario batted 2-for-3 with a run and RBI. Both players were making their debuts in Cougar uniforms.
Making his first collegiate appearance, UH freshman southpaw Wes Musick as the starter. The Lufkin native did not allow any hits with a strikeout in three shutout innings of work to collect the win and improved to 1-0.
SFA starter Jake Leonhardt collected the loss and fell to 0-1 after giving up six runs off three hits with two strikeouts in two innings.
Steven Hill batted 2-for-5, while catcher Kevin Croft went 2-for-3 with a double to lead the Lumberjacks offense, which rapped out 10 hits in the game. Outfielder David Jeans also batted 2-for-4 with a run and RBI.
The Cougars return to action this weekend when they compete at the Houston College Classic at Minute Maid Park for the seventh consecutive season. UH opens the tournament at 7 p.m., Friday, when they face No. 20 Baylor.
From there, the team will meet Texas A&M at 3:30 p.m., Saturday before closing out their stay at 11 a.m., Sunday, against No. 8 Arizona State.
Fans can hear the game live on UHCougars.com with former Cougar letterwinners Nick Torina and Pat Cauley calling all the action. Fans can follow live stats by clicking on the "Gametracker" link on the front page of UHCougars.com or on the Schedule and Results page off the Baseball main page.
The Cougars struck for the game's first runs in the first inning. Lormand and Stewart drew back-to-back walks to lead off the game, and Lormand came around for the first run of the season on Cesario's RBI-single through the right side. Two batters later, Stirneman lifted a fly ball down the left-field line in foul territory, allowing Stewart to score from third base and give the Cougars a 2-0 lead.
The score remained that way until the third inning when the Cougars erupted for nine runs. Kingsbury and Bryan Pounds each laced two-run singles, but Stewart provided the big blast with a grand slam.
SFA put its first mark on the scoreboard in the fourth inning when Kevin Crabtree led off with a homer run to left field. Three batters later, Chris Smith launched a two-run homer down the left-field line. Croft added an RBI-double, and Jeans posted an RBI-single to trim the Cougar lead to 11-5.
The Cougars got two of those runs back in the next half-inning. After Stirneman slapped a single down the right-field line to lead off, Flores smashed a two-run homer to left center for a 13-5 UH lead.
In the fifth inning, Kingsbury and Stirneman laced back-to-back two-out doubles for the first run of the frame. Flores then ripped an RBI-single up the middle to plate Stirneman and give the Cougars a 15-5 lead.
SFA pinch hitter Jeremy Arterburn lifted a sacrifice fly into right field to score Croft in the sixth inning and pull the Lumberjacks to within 15-6. However, that would cap the scoring for both teams.
