AUBURN - The State College Spikes faded away from what appeared to be a promising start Friday night, surrendering seven runs in the last six innings in a 7-1 loss to Auburn.
Glenn Gaston / Special to The Citizen
Auburn Doubledays pitcher Kyle Walter delivers a pitch to the plate during Friday night's game against State College at Falcon Park.
Auburn Doubledays pitcher Kyle Walter delivers a pitch to the plate during Friday night's game against State College at Falcon Park.
The win snapped a three-game skid for the Doubledays, who host the Spikes again at 6:05 p.m. tonight for the series' rubber match.
State College (4-7) started off with an eight-hit advantage until the bottom of the fourth when Auburn (7-4) began a game-long rally. The Spikes held a one-run lead before the Doubledays bats returned to form to pelt the State College pitching staff with nine hits.
Calvin Anderson scored for the Spikes in the top of the fourth, putting the Doubledays in the hole after threatening in each of the previous innings.
Auburn got its bats going in the bottom half of the inning, stringing together its first three hits to take a 2-1 advantage. Bartolo Nicholas had a lead-off single and was joined on the base paths by Chris Demons, who was hit by a pitch. Both advanced on a passed ball and Nicholas scored courtesy of a David Cooper RBI. Adam Amar drove Demons home minutes later. Luis Rivera also singled but was stranded on consecutive ground-outs.
The Spikes were retired for the first time in order in the fifth but the Doubledays weren't content to sit on their lead.
Auburn tacked on two runs on two breaks in the bottom of the fifth. First, Nicholas escaped a double play when Chad Rice mishandled a throw from shortstop Silvia Pena, allowing Nicholas and lead-off runner Bryan Kervin to reach safely. Then on a double steal, Nicholas appeared to be out but was ruled safe at third. Auburn would capitalize with RBI singles from Demons and Cooper.
From then on the Doubledays seemed to take the spark away from the Spikes. State College couldn't muster any offense, and earlier base-running blunders were proving costly.
In the first, Matt Payne was rung up trying to sneak home when Pena was jammed trying to stretch his single into a double. Two Spikes were called out stealing in the second and fourth before their offense was shut down.
Auburn crossed the plate twice in the seventh and once in the eighth to complete the scoring. Nicholas and Demons came home on RBIs from Demons and Adam Amar, respectively.
In the eighth, Jon Del Campo scored from first on Leance Soto's double to the left corner.
Kyle Walter picked up his first win of 2008, pitching three innings, giving up three hits, a run, striking out two and walking one. Ramone Aguero was tagged for his second loss of the season, pitching four innings, giving up three hits, two earned runs, hitting one, walking one and striking out one.
Demons paced Auburn at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs. David Cooper (hit) and Adam Amar (two hits) also had two RBIs. Soto pitched in with an RBI double.
Doubledays 7
Spikes 1
D-days Today
Record: 7-4
Standings: Second place, .5 games out of first
Next: vs. State College, 7 p.m.
State College (4-7) started off with an eight-hit advantage until the bottom of the fourth when Auburn (7-4) began a game-long rally. The Spikes held a one-run lead before the Doubledays bats returned to form to pelt the State College pitching staff with nine hits.
Calvin Anderson scored for the Spikes in the top of the fourth, putting the Doubledays in the hole after threatening in each of the previous innings.
Auburn got its bats going in the bottom half of the inning, stringing together its first three hits to take a 2-1 advantage. Bartolo Nicholas had a lead-off single and was joined on the base paths by Chris Demons, who was hit by a pitch. Both advanced on a passed ball and Nicholas scored courtesy of a David Cooper RBI. Adam Amar drove Demons home minutes later. Luis Rivera also singled but was stranded on consecutive ground-outs.
The Spikes were retired for the first time in order in the fifth but the Doubledays weren't content to sit on their lead.
Auburn tacked on two runs on two breaks in the bottom of the fifth. First, Nicholas escaped a double play when Chad Rice mishandled a throw from shortstop Silvia Pena, allowing Nicholas and lead-off runner Bryan Kervin to reach safely. Then on a double steal, Nicholas appeared to be out but was ruled safe at third. Auburn would capitalize with RBI singles from Demons and Cooper.
From then on the Doubledays seemed to take the spark away from the Spikes. State College couldn't muster any offense, and earlier base-running blunders were proving costly.
In the first, Matt Payne was rung up trying to sneak home when Pena was jammed trying to stretch his single into a double. Two Spikes were called out stealing in the second and fourth before their offense was shut down.
Auburn crossed the plate twice in the seventh and once in the eighth to complete the scoring. Nicholas and Demons came home on RBIs from Demons and Adam Amar, respectively.
In the eighth, Jon Del Campo scored from first on Leance Soto's double to the left corner.
Kyle Walter picked up his first win of 2008, pitching three innings, giving up three hits, a run, striking out two and walking one. Ramone Aguero was tagged for his second loss of the season, pitching four innings, giving up three hits, two earned runs, hitting one, walking one and striking out one.
Demons paced Auburn at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs. David Cooper (hit) and Adam Amar (two hits) also had two RBIs. Soto pitched in with an RBI double.
Doubledays 7
Spikes 1
D-days Today
Record: 7-4
Standings: Second place, .5 games out of first
Next: vs. State College, 7 p.m.
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