The University of Akron Athletics
Turocy Breaks Record as Zips Fall in Finale
May 22 | Baseball
Sophomore Drew Turocy made history today as the University of Akron baseball team battled Kent State but the Flashes held true to their namesake and were Golden in a 20-7 victory over the Zips in both teams' season and series finale at Lee Jackson Field this afternoon.
Turocy clubbed his 95th hit of the season in his final at bat with a sharp comebacker up the middle to become Akron's all-time single season hit leader, eclipsing Steve Sada's mark of 94.
The Zips found their offensive stride late in today's game, scoring in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings but most of the damage had already been done as Kent State scored in all but two frames (second and eighth) today.
Kyle Hallock (6-4) earned the win in three innings to guide Kent State (34-22, 18-9 MAC) to the MAC East Division title, gaining entrance to next week's Conference tournament. Sophomore Scott Foster (2-6) suffered the loss in three innings as the Zips closed out the season with a 21-34 overall and 3-24 in MAC play.
Seniors Kevin Haas and Nick Solitario paced five Zips who finished with two hits as each registered a pair and drove in two RBI.
The game seemed close in the early goings as the teams traded runs in the first. Kent State plated a run in the first on a sac-fly RBI which Akron countered in the bottom half on Kyle Hallett's two-out RBI single but the Zips would struggle offensively to muster any more until late in the game.
Conversely, the Golden Flashes had the opposite problem, plating six runs in the third to take a 7-1 lead.
Kent State built its lead to 9-1 in the fourth on the heels of two singles, a hit batsman and a sacrifice fly RBI before adding a trio of runs in the fifth on a two-out three-run Ben Klafczynski home run, extending the lead 12-1.
The visiting Flashes added two more runs in the sixth on a two-RBI single before the Zips responded with a single tally in the home half. A lead off Turocy walk was followed up with a two-out RBI double from John Turk to make it a 12-2 ballgame.
Akron's runs wouldn't make much of a difference as the Golden Flashes tallied two in the sixth on a two-RBI single before pushing across three in the seventh on a RBI double, sac-fly RBI and RBI single to make it a 17-2 affair.
The Zips made a run of things in the seventh with back-to-back singles from pinch hitter Jason Corzine and Solitario to set the stage for a RBI double off the bat of pinch hitter James Sheltrown. Haas cleared the bases with his team leading 17th double to make it 17-5 but KSU reliever Justin Gill retired the next three Zips to end the threat.
With Bobby Simone holding the Flashes off the board for just the second inning in the game atop the eighth, the Zips worked to plate two runs and score for the third consecutive inning in the home half. After Turk was hit by a pitch to start the frame, Corzine clubbed his second hit of the game to put a pair on for Solitario who doubled to right center to plate both runs however the score remained 17-7 in favor of Kent State.
The Golden Flashes scored in the ninth, on a three-run home run
to right off the bat of Kyle McMillen to plow ahead and take
today's game, 20-7.
This season, Akron set program records for at-bats (2048), hits
(629), doubles (114), RBI (334) and innings pitched (491.2).
