The University of Akron Athletics
Turocy, Zips Blank Northern Illinois, 5-0
March 31 | Baseball
Behind a complete-game shut out by Frank Turocy, the
University of Akron baseball team evened its series with Northern
Illinois in a 5-0 decision Saturday at Lee Jackson Field. Turocy
(1-1) scattered seven hits and struck out seven, while walking
none, in his first career complete-game shutout.
With the win, the Zips improved to 12-7 overall and 2-3 in the
Mid-American Conference. It was the first league loss for the
Huskies, who fell to 13-9, 4-1.
The Zips gave Turocy (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) all the offense he
would need in a three-run fourth inning, highlighted by a two-run
double by Vince Chiera (Akron,
Ohio/Walsh Jesuit). It was Akron's first nine-inning, complete-game
victory since 2005.
After two hitless innings to start the game, Turocy ran into
trouble in the third when Northern Illinois, the league's top
hitting team, put runners on first and second with one out. But the
third-year sophomore avoided the big inning by inducing a pop up
and a ground ball to end the threat.
Turocy allowed just two hits through the next three frames before
pitching out of a jam again in the seventh after the Huskies put
runners on first and second with one out. The right-hander snagged
a sharply-hit ground ball back up the middle and started a 1-6-3
double play, one of two on the day for the Zips, that ended the
inning.
NIU threatened one final time in the ninth inning with a lead-off
double and a hit batsmen, but Turocy got a fly ball and a pop out
before striking out the final batter of the game to preserve the
shutout.
Scott Gunn (Toledo,
Ohio/St. Francis de Sales) and
Kurt Davidson (North
Canton, Ohio/Hoover) led off the Zips' fourth with back-to-back
singles and
Charlie Lenhard (Columbus,
Ohio/Upper Arlington) was hit by a pitch to load the bases for
Doug McNulty (Homer City,
Ohio/Homer-Center), who drew a walk to score the first run of the
game. After a fly ball to center, Chiera drove a 1-0 pitch over the
center fielder's head to plate Davidson and Lenhard and give the
Zips a 3-0 lead.
UA added single tallies in the fifth, on a sacrifice fly by
Lenhard, and again in the seventh, on a single by
Brian Kordal (Twinsburg,
Ohio/Twinsburg). Davidson, Chiera and
Kevin Haas (North Olmstead,
Ohio/St. Ignatius) each recorded two hits for Akron.
The Zips and Huskies will conclude their three-game series at Lee
Jackson Field Sunday at 1 p.m.
ZIPS NOTEBOOK: Davidson has hit safely in his last
eight games and is batting .400 (14x35) with three home runs and
seven RBI during that time … Haas, who stole his third base
of the season in the eighth inning, is hitting .389 (7x18) in five
league games … Turocy's complete-game, shut out was the
first by an Akron pitcher since Ross Liersemann, a draft pick of
the Florida Marlins last spring, blanked Marshall (10-0) on May 6,
2005 … the 2006 Zips didn't record their 12th win of the
season until April 30.
