Etta Express opens 2007 season with a pair of wins in Georgia
Piconke finishes the day with five hits and two home runs

March 3, 2007
DEMOREST, Georgia — The 2007 Marietta College baseball team began its national championship defense with a pair of victories at Loudenmilk Field on the campus of Piedmont College Saturday (March 3) afternoon. The seventh-ranked Pioneers opened the day with a 6-1 victory over the host Lions and then capped off the day with a 12-10 triumph over No. 29 Bridgwater (Va.) College.

With the losses, Piedmonts falls to 3-7, while Bridgewater is now 0-5.

Junior right fielder Tony Piconke (Clinton, Mich./Clintondale) sparked the offense Saturday, hitting a home run in both games. Piconke had plenty of help on offense, while sophomores Jason Baumler (Crownsville, Md./Old Mill), Justin Merryman (New Philadelphia) and T.J. Knowlton (Greenwich/Mapleton) took care of things on the mound.

Marietta, who prior to Saturday had not stepped onto a baseball field this spring, had its bats going early. Piconke opened the scoring of game one in the top of the first inning when he lifted a ball into short right field, only for the wind to carry it over the fence for a two-run home run. Second baseman Ryan Belanger (Coldwater, Mich.), who led off the game with a single up the middle, scored on the play.

Marietta’s bats kept it going in the second, plating another pair of runs when a ball off Piconke’s bat was mishandled by a Lion fielder with two outs and the bases loaded, allowing shortstop Ryan Eschbaugh (Marietta) and Merryman, who started game one in centerfield, to score and give the Pioneers a 4-0 lead.

The Lions’ lone run came when right fielder Justin Vorherr stole home with two outs and the bases loaded in the fourth inning.

The Etta Express added an insurance run with two outs in the seventh frame. First baseman Joe Litke (Windsor, Conn.) singled up the middle and Belanger raced home from second base when the ball, which was knocked down by the shortstop, was thrown to second in an attempt to get Piconke.

Marietta completed the scoring in game one with a run in the ninth. Litke drove home Belanger, who reached on a two-base error to start the final frame.

Baumler had just the outing that the coaching staff was looking for, scattering the one run on seven hits over seven innings. The right-hander did not walk a batter and matched a career high with seven strikeouts, before giving way to Knowlton, who allowed one hit over the final two innings.

Marietta was out-hit eight to six with a different Pioneer accounting for each base hit in the game.

The game against Bridgewater had much more offense, as the teams combined for 22 runs and 24 hits. Fortunately, Marietta came out on top with a 12-10 victory.

The Pioneers jumped ahead again early, scoring a pair of runs in the first. Back-to-back two-out singles by Piconke and Litke set the table for sophomore designated hitter Cameron Cimino (Boardman), who drove in the Piconke with the first run of the game. Litke scored off an error on the next play to make the score 2-0.

The Eagles bounced back with a run of their own in the first, scoring on a Merryman wild pitch, and then added two more in the second, when Jono Brooks doubled home a pair of runs.

Marietta tied the game in the third, when Piconke blasted a home run to right field, his second of the day and the spring. The Etta Express then erupted for seven runs to break the game open for the time being. A pair of Eagle errors set up an inning in which 11 Pioneers came up to the plate. Piconke had a key three-run double, while sophomore outfielder Don Pugliese (Coraopolis, Pa./West Allegheny) and freshmen catcher Danny Jones (Lima/Shawnee) and outfielder Jeremy Reese (Massillon/Washington) each drove in a run.

The Pioneers increased their lead to 11-4 when Jones scored on a Belanger safety-squeeze in the seventh inning and to 12-6 after junior third baseman Dom Winters (Washington, Pa.) drove home Jones with a double in the ninth.

Bridgwater was able to make it close by plating six runs off freshman reliever Dave Van Voorhees (Bethesda, Md./Bullis) in the final two innings, before Knowlton returned to the mound to shut the door and pick up the save, his first of the year.

Piconke finished 4-for-6 with three runs scored and four RBI, while Pugliese added three hits in five at-bats against the Eagles. In addition, Jones and Winters each had a pair of hits.

Merryman worked seven solid innings, allowing four runs on six hits. He struck out six and walked two. Van Voorhees, who walked two and struck out two, was tagged for six runs (three earned) on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. Knowlton allowed one hit before striking out the final hitter to end the threat.

Marietta returns to action Sunday (March 4) when it goes head-to-head once again with Piedmont. First pitch is slated for 12 p.m. All of the action can be heard online at http://pioneers.marietta.edu/onlinebroadcasts.html.