April 13, 2008

Game One Box Score | Game Two Box Score

NEW HAVEN, Conn.--The Yale baseball team has developed a flair for the dramatic recently. It's a good thing, too, because one swing of the bat on Sunday afternoon may have saved the Bulldogs' season. P.J. Gorynski's two-run walk-off homer capped a comeback from 6-2 down, as the Bulldogs (15-18-1, 7-4-1 Ivy) posted a 7-6 win over Harvard (4-25, 3-9 Ivy) to salvage a doubleheader split at Yale Field. The Crimson took game one, 9-5. A loss would've put the Bulldogs 3.5 games behind division-leading Dartmouth with eight conference games left.

With Yale trailing 6-2 in the bottom of the seventh, the Bulldogs loaded the bases with two out. Trygg Larsson-Danforth was called upon to pinch hit for Dan Soltman and sent a grounder towards second base. Larsson-Danforth appeared to beat the throw to first, but was called out to end the inning. John Stuper, Yale's Mazzuto Family Head Coach, argued the call to no avail and was ejected.

Stuper's ejection seemed to rally his troops. Matt Rogers singled to start the Harvard eighth, but was quickly erased on a double play. Steve Gilman then struck out Griff Jenkins to end the inning. Josh Cox got the bottom of the eighth started with a single in between the third baseman and shortstop. After Cox stole second and Gorynski walked, Ryan Lavarnway lifted a deep fly ball to centerfield, allowing Cox to move to third with one out. Cox scored on Stefan Schropp's sacrifice fly. Jake Doyle then singled to the gap in right center and Gorynski came around to make it 6-4. Following a Chris Sweeney single, Andy Megee hit into a fielder's choice to end the inning.

Gilman sent the Crimson down in order in the top of the ninth, setting the stage for Gorynski's heroics. After Gant Elmore grounded out to start the inning, pinch hitter Andrew Moore roped a double down the left field line. Cox followed with an RBI single to left field. A passed ball allowed Cox, the tying run, to move into scoring position with Gorynski at the plate. With Lavarnway on deck, Gorynski knew he would get a pitch to hit, and he deposited it into the trees beyond the left field wall. It was Gorynski's third home run of the year and Yale's third walk-off win this season. Last Sunday, the Bulldogs won both games against Cornell in their last at-bat.

Harvard took a 2-0 lead with one run in the first and one in the second off Yale starter Alex Christ. However, the Bulldogs rallied to tie it with a two-spot in the bottom of the fourth. Cox got the inning started with a single up the middle, then moved to third when the catcher's throw went into centerfield as he stole second. Cox scored on Lavarnway's RBI single. After a Schropp single and a wild pitch, Lavarnway scored on Doyle's groundout to tie the game.

Christ ran into trouble in the top of the sixth. After giving up a walk and a double to the first two batters of the inning, he was relieved by Vinny Lally. Lally, however, surrendered an infield single and a walk to load the bases. Sean O'Hara then knocked a two-run single up the middle to give the Crimson a 5-2 advantage. Gilman, the Bulldogs' closer, was then called upon to stop the bleeding and did just that, striking out Jenkins before Dillon O'Neill popped up to end the inning. Harvard added a run in the sixth, the first earned run Gilman's allowed all season, to go in front 6-2.

Gilman (3-0) pitched four innings of relief, his longest outing of the season. He gave up one run on three hits and struck out two to earn the win. Christ lasted into the sixth, giving up four runs (three earned) and four hits while striking out four and walking three. The Bulldogs had 10 hits in the game, with Cox going 3-for-5 and Doyle going 2-for-4. Cox also scored three runs, while Doyle had two RBIs.

Brad Unger started for Harvard and lasted 6.2 innings. He allowed two runs on four hits with one walk and one strikeout. Anthony Nutter (0-2) took the loss after giving up three runs on three hits in 0.2 innings. Harvard had nine hits in game two. O'Hara was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, while Tyler Albright went 2-for-4 at the plate.

In game one, Harvard got to Yale starter Chris Finneran early and often. The Crimson scored a run in the second on two singles, an error, a hit batsman and a wild pitch, then erupted for five in the top of the third. After Jeff Stoeckel grounded out to start the inning, eight consecutive Crimson batters reached base. Albright and Chris Rouches each roped a two-run single, and a single by O'Hara drove in another run. Harvard added three more in the top of the fourth on a three-run homer by Matt Kramer that chased Finneran.

Yale briefly held a 2-1 lead after a two-run second. Sweeney got the inning started with a double to left center, then moved to third on Megee's single to right. Sweeney scored on Elmore's RBI single. After Soltman and Cox reached on successive fielder's choices, Gorynski belted an RBI single to give the Bulldogs the lead.

That was all the offense the Bulldogs would muster off Harvard starter Shawn Haviland until the fifth, when Doyle went yard for the fifth time this season. Sweeney followed with a single, but was left stranded on first base. Haviland retired the side in order in the sixth, but Gorynski doubled to center leading off the bottom of the seventh. With two down, Doyle came up again and delivered a blast down the left field line that barely stayed fair. His sixth home run of the year made it 9-5, but Haviland got Sweeney to end the game.

Yale's eight hits were spread among five players. Gorynski, Doyle and Sweeney all went 2-for-4, while Megee and Elmore each had a hit. Doyle also scored two runs and drove in three. Finneran (2-3) struggled for the first time in three conference starts. He gave up nine hits and nine runs in 3.1 innings. He also struck out four and walked three. Matthew Smith gave up a hit and struck out two in 1.2 innings of relief. Robert Gruber threw an impressive two innings, allowing one hit while striking out two and walking one.

Harvard had 11 hits in game one, with O'Neill, Kramer and Albright each belting two. Kramer went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and three runs scored, while Albright and Rouches each drove in two. Haviland (1-5) pitched a complete game for the Crimson, giving up five runs on eight hits while striking out six and walking two.

Dartmouth (17-10, 10-2 Ivy) swept its twinbill at Brown on Sunday, putting the first-place Big Green 2.5 games ahead of the Bulldogs in the Rolfe Division standings. The squads face-off in a crucial four-game series next weekend in Hanover. However, the Bulldogs first conclude their 11-game homestand with a non-conference doubleheader against Fairfield (10-20) starting at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Report filed by Joe Clifford, Yale Sports Publicity