April 21, 2001

Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The Lafayette baseball team broke out for 12 runs in the nightcap of a Saturday doubleheader with Army, winning the second game 12-8 after dropping the opener 6-2.

Game one was a pitcher's duel most of the way between Army's Buck Adams and Lafayette's Matt Tambellini (Millville, N.J./Sacred Heart).

Lafayette got to Adams in the first inning when senior Ian Burley (Nazareth, Pa./Notre Dame) scored Jason Boyd (Littlestown, Pa./Littlestown) on an RBI-groundout. Boyd had led off the inning with a double to left field.

Army took a 2-1 lead in the next half inning. A bases-loaded walk plated Buddy Gengler who had reached on a lead-off single. Josh Rizzo drove a sac fly deep to center to drive home Dominic Trippodo.

Lafayette tied the game in the bottom of the second. Junior Vince D'Angelis (Montvale, N.J./St. Joseph's Regional) led off the inning with a single and promptly stole second base. Freshman Craig Alexander (Fairport, N.Y./Fairport) tied the score 2-2 with his RBI-single to right.

After a scoreless third inning, Army took the lead for good, scoring two runs, one coming on a Tambellini balk that scored Kyle Kalkwarf from third, and the other on an RBI-double from Army lead-off hitter Josh Holden.

Tambellini left the game following a scoreless fifth inning. In the sixth frame, Army added two runs to its lead. Both came against Lafayette reliever Jeff Zambrano (Cedar Grove, N.J./Cedar Grove), and both were unearned. Miguel Gastellum's single down the rightfield line plated the sixth run in Army's 6-2 victory.

Adams (3-3) got the complete-game win for Army, allowing two runs on five hits. Tambellini (1-4) was hit for the loss after allowing four runs on six hits and two walks over five innings.

In the nightcap of the twinbill, Lafayette used a big offensive effort from Alexander and a strong relief pitching performance from Kevin Swords (Staten Island, N.Y./Curtis) to outmuscle Army, 12-8.

Lafayette surrendered an unearned run in the first inning that came on an RBI single from Josh Minney, but the Leopard offense responded with a five-run home half of the first. Burley cracked a three-run home run to right field to give Lafayette a 3-1 advantage. Freshman Adam Rosenberg (Ocean Grove, N.J./Neptune) single home the fourth run and a final score came on a passed ball to give the 'Pards a 5-1 advantage.

The scoring continued in the second inning. Army struck back with two runs on a Rizzo homer with a runner aboard. Lafayette, however, posted four runs on a pair of home runs. Boyd went yard with Nick Taro (Bernardsville, N.J./Bernardsville) earning the easy trip home after he had led off the inning with a single. Alexander had what would turn out to be the game-winning hit, when he lifted a two-run towering shot to left. He finished the game 3-for-4 with five RBI.

After a scoreless third inning, the teams' bats heated up again. Army scored five runs in the top of the fourth. RBI-singles from Kalkwarf and Gengler and an RBI-groundout from Minney accounted for four of the runs. Gastellum added the other run with a bases-loaded sac fly, as Army pulled within one run, 9-8.

The Leopards pulled away with three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Alexander's second home run of the game was of the three-run variety and gave Lafayette a 12-8 lead and gave Alexander his team-leading seventh round-tripper of the season.

Swords, who came on in relief of starter Joe Saporetti (Woodbury Heights, N.J./Gateway Regional) with two outs in the top of the fourth, was dominant throughout the final three innings. Swords retired Army in order in the fifth and faced just four batters in the sixth. Swords faced five batters in the top of the seventh and struck out two of them. He ended the game by inducing Rizzo to fly out to center.

Swords (2-6) earned the win over 3.1 innings, striking out seven while allowing just two hits over that span. Wes Bumgardner (5-2) took the loss, allowing all 12 Lafayette runs on 10 hits and two walks.

Lafayette (8-25, 3-11) and Army (13-21-1, 7-7) will play another doubleheader tomorrow at Metzgar Fields. The first pitch is slated for noon.