Robbins Two-Run Blast Gives UVA-Wise Baseball Split with 16th-ranked Union

April 17, 2007
Game 1 Boxscore

Game 2 Boxscore

Wise, VA – For the second time this season, Brad Robbins blasted a game-winning home run, a two-run shot, to win a game for the UVA-Wise baseball team. Tied 2-2, Robbins belted the round-tripper to vault the Highland Cavaliers to a 4-2 game two victory after falling 8-3 to the 16 th-ranked Union College Bulldogs in the opener of the Appalachian Athletic Conference twinbill.

The split kept the Cavs (22-11-1/9-5 AAC) one game behind both Milligan and Union (34-9) in the league at 10-4.

Robbins (Big Stone Gap, VA) produced two hits, scored twice and drove in two runs of game two. Junior Matt Hall (Hillsville, VA) was the most consistent hitter of the day for the Cavs with a four for six twinbill. Hall lined a double and two singles with a run in the first affair before scoring one more time with a hit in the latter contest.

After dropping his last two decisions, David Jones (Amelia, VA) improved to 7-2 on the mound by going the distance in the late contest. He allowed nine hits, two earned runs and walked three while striking out five.

Jorge Laboy (Woodbridge, VA), John Bigley (Woodbridge, VA), Alan Stoupa (McLean, VA), Josh Verts (Winchester, VA) and Mike Lang (Fredericksburg, VA) had the other singles for the home team.

After two runs by Union in the top of the first, Hall led off the home half of the frame with a single, moved to second on a walk to Edwin Narvaez and scored on a single up the middle from Bigley.

Robbins was the key figure from that point for UVA-Wise. In the fourth, the sophomore had an infield single to lead off, stole second and then stole third and scored when the Bulldog catcher threw the ball into left field to tie the game, 2-2.

In the home sixth, Bigley led off and reached on an error by the Union short stop and was pinch ran for by Brad Austin (Hillsville, VA). Robbins connected on a 3-1 pitch from Union’s Chaz Bargo well over the right field fence, across the road and estimated at 380 feet for the Cavs first lead of the day, 4-2. Following a lead off single, Narvaez turned an unassisted double play and then Jones induced Justin Hart to fly out to right to end the contest.

Union scored a pair of runs in the top of the first of the opener and never trailed in the first game. UVA-Wise scored once in the first on a Verts single before the visitors added one score in the fourth and three in the fifth to open a 6-1 advantage.

The Cavs plated one tally in the fifth and one in the seventh before falling 8-3 in the first ballgame.

Robbins fanned eight in six innings to drop to 2-3 on the season.

Union’s Mark Parsons went to 7-3 after 6 1/3 innings. Justin Hart had three hits with a triple and double in the first game before Matt Mahony added three hits in the late game and four for the day.

UVA-Wise will play southwest Virginia rival Emory & Henry College on Wednesday for a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader.