Kendall Bolt produced three RBIs in a 2-for-4 effort on Friday

May 16, 2008

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy baseball lead dropped the first game of the best-of-three Patriot League Championship series to Bucknell, 7-6, on Friday afternoon at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium. The Midshipmen held a 6-1 lead going into the seventh, but the Bison scored five times in the seventh and again in the ninth to come away with the win. Navy dropped to 32-24-1 on the year, while Bucknell improved to 25-22-2.

"Whenever you play 57 games in a season, you don't go without some disappointing performances along the way," stated Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "You have to give Bucknell credit for swinging the bats and working their way back.

"There is plenty of time to be able to look back upon the season. We are just going to look to play well tomorrow. Any team that reaches the finals of a conference championship needs to be resilient. I think we are. We just need to come back tomorrow."

The Midshipmen jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first, as Kendall Bolt (So./Stockton, Calif.) smacked a two-run double down the right-field line. The Bison answered with a run in the second, but Navy countered with a four-run third, capped by a two-run double off the bat of Jeff Bland (Fr./Basking Ridge, N.J.).

Navy starting pitcher Oliver Drake (So./Gardner, Mass.) got into trouble early in each of the first-four innings, but delivered the key pitch to get out of the jams with just one run crossing the plate. In that span, Bucknell stranded seven runners on base - five of which were in scoring position.

The Mids had an opportunity to build on their cushion in the fifth. Thomas Hamilton (Sr./Houston, Texas), Michael Speciale (So./Pearland, Texas) and Bolt produced back-to-back-to-back singles to start the frame and load the bases. However, an infield fly, a strikeout looking and a flyout to the warning track in right ended the inning without a runner crossing the plate.

"That was certainly a pivotal point in the game and we did not get anything out of it," said Kostacopoulos. "If we would have been able to scratch out a couple, it could have changed the complexion of the entire game."

In the seventh, Bucknell sent 10 batters to the plate in tying the game at six. The Bison chased Drake out of the game after a leadoff walk and a ground-rule double to put runners on second and third. Drew Carlson (So./Boca Raton, Fla.) entered the game and allowed four singles and a walk without recording an out. With the score knotted and runners on first and second with still nobody out, Chris Murray (So./Navarre, Fla.) came in and induced a double-play ball and a strikeout looking to end the stanza.

Bucknell called upon Jason Buursma in the eighth and Renaldo Hollins (Sr./Virginia Beach, Va.) legged out a triple to right with one out. However, he would not come home, as Buursma struck out the next batter and got a groundout to keep the game tied.

The Bison carried that momentum into the ninth to take their first lead of the day. Buursma - who started the game in left field - led off with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. Navy called upon JD Melton (So./Myrtle Beach, S.C.), who came in and issued a walk before allowing single through the left side that allowed Buursma to score.

Murray was tagged for the loss, despite allowing just one hit and one walk over 2.1 innings with three strikeouts. Navy's bullpen yielded four runs on six hits with three free passes over the final-three innings of the game.

"Chris did a good job in a tough spot with the game tied and two guys on in the seventh," said Kostacopoulos. "He got us out of that jam and gave us a clean eighth. He fulfilled his role.

"Today just wasn't Drew (Carlson's) day. However, he has come through for us several times before in similar spots. This will sometimes just happen."

Drake went six-plus innings for the Mids, as he scattered nine hits and three runs with one walk and seven strikeouts. The Navy right-hander threw 110 pitches, 71 for strikes.

"Oliver did a solid job of getting us into the seventh inning with a five-run lead," stated Kostacopoulos. "He had good stuff today and was hit with a couple balls that found their way through the infield."

Navy's offense collected 13 hits on Friday afternoon, 10 of which came in the first-five innings. Hamilton and Speciale each went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, while Bolt went 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Over the last-two games, Navy's 3-4-5 hitters have combined to hit .692 (18-for-26).

"The middle part of the order is certainly doing its job," said Kostacopoulos. "Their numbers at the plate over the last-two games speak for themselves."

The Midshipmen will look to bounce back against the Bison tomorrow, with first pitch slated for 12 noon. If Navy wins that contest to force a third and deciding game in the series, the ballgame will start 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game. Live stats for Saturday's action will be available via GameTracker on www.NavySports.com(.)