May 15, 2008

Pioneers Open NCCAA East Region Tournament With Wins Over Nyack, Mt. Vernon Nazarene

 
The Malone College baseball team began play at the three-team, double-elimination NCCAA (National Christian College Athletic Association) East Region Tournament on Thursday afternoon with single, seven-inning victories over Nyack (NY) College and Mt. Vernon Nazarene University. 
 
#2 seed Mount Vernon Nazarene (34-19 overall) got the tourney action underway in game one at Thurman Munson Stadium with a 1-0 triumph over third-seeded Nyack (12-28 overall).  The top-seeded Pioneers (38-13 overall) then eliminated Nyack from tournament contention in game two as Malone sophomore left-handed starting pitcher Todd Liberatore (Tusc. Central Catholic H.S.) worked a complete-game, four-hit shutout on the mound to lead his squad to a 5-0 victory.  With the Warriors’ early exit following game two, the Pioneers and Cougars then began a best-of-three series to determine the NCCAA East Region Champion.  Malone registered a 4-3 win in Thursday's third and final contest and therefore now holds a 1-0 advantage over Mt. Vernon Nazarene in the NCCAA East Region Championship Series.  The Pioneers can wrap up the NCCAA East Region Title with a win in game four at 11:00 a.m. on Friday.  The Cougars need to win game four to force a deciding game five that, if necessary, would be played at 1:30 p.m. on Friday.
 
Against Nyack in the tournament’s second game, Malone did all of its offensive damage in the bottom of the third.  Junior shortstop Scott McIlvain (Marlington H.S.) brought the first two runs of the inning home with a single.  The Warriors quickly retired the next two Malone batters before a walk by senior designated hitter Zach Winkhart (Canton Central Catholic H.S.) put runners on first and second with two outs.  Senior leftfielder Chris Mandeville (Tuslaw H.S.) then stepped to the plate and ripped a double to push the Pioneers’ advantage to 4-0 and tie the Malone single-season record for two-base hits  (Former teammate Bob Dubovec also hit 19 doubles during the 2006 campaign).  Senior right-fielder John Stallings (Louisville H.S.) wrapped up the big inning with a single to right field that scored Mandeville and gave the Pioneers a commanding five-run lead.  This sizable cushion was more than enough for Liberatore as he held Nyack off the scoreboard to cement the 5-0 victory and record his first shutout of the season.  The strong outing marked Liberatore’s fifth complete game of the year and improved his record to 7-1.  Stallings paced the Pioneer offense in the contest as he finished 3-for-3 with one run batted in and two stolen bases.
 
In Thursday’s finale, Mount Vernon Nazarene plated two runs in the bottom of the second inning to take an early 3-1 lead.  Malone responded in the top of the third, however, as back-to-back two-out RBI singles by junior third baseman Zac Barson (Canton South H.S.) and Winkhart put the Pioneers in front 4-3.  Freshman left-handed starting pitcher Jeff Shenker (Twinsburg H.S.) then took command of the game for Malone, holding the Cougars to one hit and no runs over the remainder of the contest to preserve the one-run victory.  Shenker improved his record to 3-1 after giving up just three runs on six total hits in his first complete-game effort of the season.  Malone tallied six hits in the contest as Barson went 1-for-3 with two runs batted in and one run scored.
 
The Pioneers and Cougars will square off again on Friday at 11:00 a.m. in the tournament's fourth game.  If Malone wins that contest, the Pioneers will lock up the NCCAA East Region Title and earn an automatic berth in the NCCAA National Tournament that is to be held at Bob Cene Park in Struthers, Ohio May 21-24.  However, a Cougar victory in game four would force a deciding game five at 1:30 p.m.
1.800.521.1146