Trailing 3-2 after three innings, Le Moyne struck for six unanswered runs over the three middle innings to record an 11-7 baseball victory over James Madison on Friday afternoon at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park.
JMU dropped its first game of the season to drop to 4-1 overall while Le Moyne picked up its first win to improve to 1-3 after being swept by No. 8 Texas A&M last weekend.
The Dolphins got one run in the fourth to tie the game and then broke it open with a three-run home run by Redmond in the fifth and two more runs in the sixth. JMU pulled within three at 8-5 after six but LMC clinched the win with three insurance runs in the eighth.
Tom McDermott recorded the victory after allowing two runs in 2 1/3 innings of middle relief. Ed Kohout went the final 3 2/3 to record the save. Senior James Weiner (Charlottesville, Va./St. Anne’s-Belfield) suffered the loss for the Dukes with six runs on five hits in 3 1/3 innings.
The fifth through seventh spot in the Dolphins’ lineup did most of the damage, combining for five hits and eight RBIs. First baseman Kody O’Connor was 2-for-3 with two walks and three RBIs. Center fielder Brett Botsford was 3-for-4 with two walks and three runs scored.
JMU led the game in hits 12-10 but couldn’t string together any significant rallies. Sophomore outfielder Johnny Bladel (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) and redshirt senior second baseman Trevor Knight (Charlottesville, Va./St. Anne’s-Belfield) each had two hits and went back-to-back on home runs in the third. Senior outfielder Alex Foltz (Mathias, W.Va./East Hardy) and sophomore third baseman Bradley Shaban (Midlothian, Va./Cosby) also had two hits.
JMU struck first in the second inning as senior shortstop David Herbek (Haymarket, Va./Battlefield) led off with a triple to the gap in left. He scored when sophomore Matt Tenaglia’s (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) check swing third strike got away for a passed ball. The Dukes had a chance for more as Tenaglia stole second and moved to third on freshman Tyler McFarland’s (Bridgewater, Va./Turner Ashby) single. Sophomore right fielder Cole McInturff (Centreville, Va./Westfield) hit a shallow fly to left that was caught over the shoulder by the third baseman. Tenaglia tagged up and scored on the play but was called out for leaving early.
Le Moyne answered back to load the bases on a double, hit batter, and a walk. O’Connor’s one-out single plated a pair of runs to put the Dolphins in the lead. JMU then recorded the second out at home on a squeeze play attempt and ended the inning on a fly out.
The Dukes got two in the third on back-to-back home runs by Bladel and Knight, the 34th of Knight’s career to tie for sixth all-time at JMU The Dolphins tied it at 3-3 on a sacrifice fly by Wiley in the fourth.
Le Moyne broke the tie in the fifth inning as a hit batter and a single set the stage for a three-run homer by Vincent Redmond and a 6-3 lead. The Dolphins added another run in the sixth on a single by Zack Wiley just over the head of the third baseman, Shaban. Wiley came in to score on a single to left by O’Connor
JMU was quiet until the sixth when Knight and junior catcher Jake Lowery (Midlothian, Va./Cosby) led off with singles and a deep foul out by Herbek advanced each one base. Tenaglia singled through the left side and Shaban doubled to the right side to drive in consecutive runs and make it 8-5.
Le Moyne loaded the bases in the eighth on a single and a pair of walks. A wild pitch brought in one run before a Mahoney double drove in two for an 11-5 lead.
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