Skoranski Four-Hit Effort Helps Cavs Take Bulldogs

May 8, 2008
BOXSCORE

Kingsport, Tenn. – Adam Skoranski's run-scoring single in the seventh and solo homer in the ninth helped UVa-Wise defeat Union College, 10-7, in the second day of the baseball NAIA Region XII Tournament. The Highland Cavaliers pounded out 18 hits to keep the team undefeated in the region.

UVa-Wise (31-21) will move on to face the top seed Tennessee Wesleyan on Friday afternoon. The Cavs and Bulldogs will have their battle of the two undefeated teams in a 12:00 p.m. first pitch at Kingsport's Hunter Wright Stadium.

Skoranski (Cheyenne, Wyo.) and Josh Verts (Winchester, Va.) both accounted for four hits apiece. Skoranski homered, doubled and lined two singles for two rbi. Verts had the exact same hits but a two-run home run and three rbi. Mike Lang (Fredericksburg, Va.) added a double and two singles while driving in two runs.

Brad Robbins (Big Stone Gap, Va.) and Matt Duffy (Martinsville, Va.) contributed two hits apiece. Robbins had an rbi single, a double and a sac fly. Duffy had a rbi single and a two-bagger. Brad Ricker (Bristol, Va.) and Jorge Laboy (Woodbridge, Va.) had bunt hits and Edwin Narvaez singled.

Verts picked up the win on the day with 2.2 frames of scoreless innings where he allowed just three hits and fanned one. David Jones (Amelia, Va.) earned his second save in two days by retiring the final two Bulldogs (41-15).

UVa-Wise broke onto the scoreboard in the first. Brad Austin walked on four pitches to begin the contest and Duffy drove him home three batters later.

Union made sure the lead did not last long. The home team put its first two batters on base and both would score, one on a sac fly and the other on a ground out, for a 2-1 tally.

In the second of four lead changes, the Cavs pushed home a trio of runs in the third. Robbins sliced a single to drive home Ricker, who had a leadoff walk, to tie the game. Verts followed with a two-run home run to left field to go in front, 4-2.

Union cut the margin to one, 4-3, with an unearned run in the third before tying it with a run without a hit in the bottom of the fourth.

Robbins and Verts teamed for another scoring combination. The two Cavs laced back-to-back doubles to make it 4-4 in the top of the fifth.

The Bulldogs had their biggest at bat in the home sixth. Union sent nine batters to the plate and were able to post three runs off just two hits while waiting out four walks as the game went to 7-4.

The final three innings belonged to UVa-Wise. In the top of the seventh, Laboy led off with a bunt single and Duffy doubled to put two runners on base. Robbins lofted a sac fly to center before Skoranski and Lang singled home the second and third runs to go back in front, 8-7.

With two outs in the top of the ninth, Skoranski homered to left before Lang doubled home Narvaez, who singled to increase the lead to 10-7. Verts enticed a ground out before Union’s Lioney Henriquez doubled. Jones came on to get the Bulldogs’ Joe Grinstead to fly out and fanned Justin Hart to end the game.