BOX SCORES AND PLAY-BY-PLAY:
USI 16, Indianapolis 2
SAUGET, Ill. – The 13th-ranked University of Southern Indiana baseball team will play for the GLVC Tournament Championship for the first time since 1994 after eliminating the University of Indianapolis Saturday afternoon at GCS Ballpark. USI also will be looking to capture its first GLVC Tournament title since 1993.
The Screaming Eagles raised their record to 42-12 overall, one win shy of the single-season record that was set in 2007. UIndy drops out of the conference tournament with a 34-20 mark.
USI will play the winner of Bellarmine University and Saint Joseph's College match-up for the conference title at noon Sunday. Bellarmine is 2-0 in the tournament, while Saint Joseph's College is facing elimination at 2-1. Fans can watch the championship live on the web through the B2 Network or listen to the game on WSWI 820AM.
The Eagles exploded for all the runs they would need in the first inning, scoring three times. Junior catcher Dylan Mooney (St. Charles, Missouri) highlighted the first inning rally with a two-run home run. Mooney's shot was his 13th of the year, one short of the school record (14) set by Kevin Brown in 1993.
After the Greyhounds got a run back in the bottom of the second, the Eagles unloaded a six spot in the top of the third. Senior third baseman Wes Fink (Clarksville, Tennessee) and sophomore second Brad Vance (Louisville, Kentucky) led the way with back-to-back home runs. Fink's two-run shot was his third of the season, while Vance slugged his sixth of the season.
USI sealed the game in the top of the fifth with seven runs after sending 11 hitters to the plate. Junior designated hitter Todd Martin (Rockport, Indiana) led the hit parade with a two-run bomb, his fourth of the year and the Eagles' fourth of the game.
Junior centerfielder Justin Blinn (Vincennes, Indiana) and senior shortstop Wandy Rosario (Boston, Massachusetts) led all of USI's hitters with four hits each. Junior leftfielder Michael Huling (South Bend, Indiana) also had three hits in the win.
On the mound, junior right-hander Dan Marcacci (Jupiter, Florida) was dominating through eight-plus innings to get the win. Marcacci (6-2) allowed eight hits and two runs, while striking out four in 8.1 innings of work. Junior right-hander Jared Canterbury (Petersburg, Illinois) got the final two outs for the Eagles, allowing a hit.
