Freshman second baseman Kyle McPherson went 6-for-7 with a home run, two triples, a double and four runs to lead the James Madison baseball team to a pair of wins over Canisius on Sunday at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park.
JMU used a walk-off RBI single from freshman center fielder Adam Sisk to earn a 5-4 win in the day’s opening contest before freshman pinch hitter Evan Hanifee blasted a grand slam for his first collegiate hit, capping a seven-run sixth inning that sealed a 10-8 comeback win in the second game.
Sophomore left fielder Josh Wyatt was 3-for-5 across the two contests, both scheduled for seven innings, to help JMU move to 7-4 on the season. Canisius dropped to 5-8 with the pair of losses.
In the first contest, Canisius opened the scoring with three runs in the second on a pair of singles with runners in scoring position, but the Dukes pulled one back in the bottom half when senior right fielder Kevin Husum drove in McPherson on a sacrifice fly to make it 3-1 after the freshman opened his day with a triple.
JMU leveled things in the fifth inning, after junior shortstop Chad Carroll singled and Wyatt drove him in with a triple off the left-center field wall. With two outs, junior first baseman Kyle Weston reached on an error to push Wyatt home and make it 3-3.
Canisius looked to have decided things in the top of the seventh, when Ryan Stekl launched a 1-0 delivery over the right field wall to put the Griffins up 4-3, but JMU fought back in the bottom half of the inning. Sophomore pinch hitter Logan Corrigan ripped a single through the left side and pinch runner Tyler Carroll moved to second on his brother Chad’s groundout. With two outs, sophomore designated hitter Brett Johnson pounded a single up the middle to score Carroll and extend the game at 4-4.
After relievers Andrew Scarpelli and Michael Evans combined to work out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth to keep the Griffins quiet, McPherson hammered another triple to the opposite field to lead off the bottom half. After a groundout, the pinch-hitting Sisk smoked the second pitch he saw into right-center to plate the game-winner.
Evans struck out the only batter he faced to earn his first win of the year and move to 1-1, while Iannick Remillard took the loss for Canisius to fall to 0-1. McPherson was the offensive leader, starting his day 3-for-4 with a pair of triples and two runs.
Canisius started the second game on the right foot as well, as second baseman Jake Lumley drove a solo home run to right field just two batters into the game. The Griffins scored eight runs in the first five innings of the game and plated at least one in each frame.
The Dukes scored a pair in the second on McPherson’s solo home run and Wyatt’s RBI single and tacked on a third on an RBI groundout from sophomore center fielder Ky Parrott, but entered the bottom of the sixth trailing 8-3.
After both Carroll brothers walked to put runners on first and second, the Dukes rallied for seven runs, all with two outs. Weston, Corrigan and McPherson all added on RBI singles to cut the lead to 8-6 before Johnson walked to load the bases for Hanifee, who pinch hit for junior catcher Chris Hanson.
The Bridgewater, Va. native, who entered the game 0-3 in his rookie season, settled in and hammered the first pitch of the at-bat for a line drive grand slam over the visitor’s bullpen to make it 10-8 and put the finishing touches on the comeback.
Freshman left-hander Tucker McCoy and Evans faced just three batters in the bottom of the seventh to close out the victory. McCoy moved to 1-0 on the year after facing just five hitters in 1.2 innings, while Evans’ second appearance of the day earned him his third save of the year. Canisius reliever Mike Elwood took the loss to fall to 0-1.
McPherson’s perfect 3-for-3 performance led the way in the second game, as the freshman tacked on his second homer of the season and a double with two RBI and two runs. Wyatt was 2-for-2 with a pair of walks, while Hanifee’s brief appearance yielded four RBI on the day.
The Dukes will be back in action on Monday afternoon, when they face Canisius for the final game of this weekend’s four-game series. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. as JMU goes for the series sweep.
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