NORFOLK, Va. – Junior righthander Brandon Gonnella pitched seven innings of four-hit ball to lead Towson University (13-9, 5-4) to a 9-1 Colonial Athletic Association victory over Old Dominion University (13-9, 4-5) in the opening game of their CAA doubleheader at Bud Metheny Complex on Saturday afternoon.
However, the Monarchs used a 10-run eighth inning in the nightcap, overcoming a 4-3 deficit to earn a 13-4 win in the nightcap. With the victory, the Monarchs won the series, two games to one. ODU pulled out a 4-3 victory on Friday night.
In the opener, Gonnella pitched seven innings and allowed only one run on four hits. He didn't walk anyone and he struck out eight. Sophomore righthander Nick Cioffi pitched a scoreless eighth inning before senior lefthander Kyle Paul nailed down the win with a scoreless ninth inning.
In the first game, both starting pitchers, Gonnella of Towson and junior lefthander Ryan Yarbrough of ODU were perfect through the first three innings.
In the top of the fourth, third baseman Zach Fisher started a rally with the first hit of the game, a single to left field. After he stole second base, junior Dominic Fratantuono drew a walk. When senior catcher Andrew Parker drew a walk, the Tigers had the bases loaded with one out. Junior centerfielder Kurt Wertz drove in the first run of the game when he grounded into a force play.
With Fratantuono on third base and Wertz on first, the two pulled off a double steal with Fratantuono scoring the Tigers' second run of the game, giving them a 2-0 advantage.
Moments later, sophomore first baseman Brendan Butler blasted a two-run homer over the left field fence, increasing the lead to 4-0.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Monarchs finally broke through against Gonnella. With two outs, leftfielder Josh Eldridge lined a solo home run over the rightfield fence, pulling ODU to within 4-1. Gonnella had retired the first 11 batters he faced.
The Tigers increased their lead to 6-1 in the sixth inning and knocked Yarbrough out of the game. With one out, Fratantuono was hit by a pitch. After Parker was retired on a fly ball to centerfield, Wertz doubled to centerfield, scoring Fratantuono. Butler greeted Michael Reinerth with another long double, scoring Wertz to make it 6-1.
Sophomore Peter Bowles led off the seventh inning with a hit and went to second base on an infield out. He scored on an RBI double by Fisher to give Towson a 7-1 advantage.
In the ninth inning, Bowles started another rally with a leadoff single. With one out, back-to-back singles by Fisher and Fratantuono loaded the bases. After Parker popped up, Wertz gave Towson a 9-1 lead with a two-run single to right.
Fisher led the Tigers with three hits and two runs scored while Wertz went two-for-five with four RBI's. Butler added two hits and drove in three runs.
In the nightcap, Ben Verlander had five hits and drove in two runs to lead ODU to the win. In the 10-run eighth inning, he had a bunt single and capped off the inning with a two-run homer.
The Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the nightcap when they scored twice in the fourth inning. Fratantuono led off with a single and scored on a one-out triple by Wertz. Wertz scored from third when Butler grounded out.
Sophomore righthander Paul Beers made that lead stand up until the sixth inning. With one out, Jordan Negrini tripled and scored on a double by Alex Kowalczyk. However, senior lefthander Mike Ryan relieved Beers and retired the side.
The Monarchs took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh when Josh Eldridge reached on an error and singles by Verlander and Slaton loaded the bases. A bases-loaded walk to Austin McGowan drove in the tying run. When Joey Burney was hit by a pitch, Verlander scored the go-ahead run. However, freshman righthander Lee Lawler came in to relieve Ryan and pitched out of the jam.
Trailing by 3-2 in the eighth inning, the Tigers rallied to take a 4-3 lead. Bowles led off with a single and Fisher drew a one-out walk. An RBI single by Fratantuono tied the score before Parker singled home the go-ahead run.
That was before everything came apart in the bottom of the eighth. The Monarchs sent 13 batters to the plate and scored 10 runs on five hits. A two-run double by Slaton put ODU ahead, 5-4. Eldridge also added a two-run single before Verlander's homer.
Towson returns to action on Tuesday with a single game at Virginia at 5:00 p.m.
