May 14, 2011

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford baseball team dropped a 2-1 decision to the Wofford Terriers in the second game of a three-game Southern Conference series Saturday afternoon at Joe Lee Griffin Field.

With the loss, Samford falls to 31-20 overall and 15-11 in Southern Conference play. Wofford improves to 22-29 overall and 9-17 in league play.

Samford was led at the plate by Stephen Ballard, going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Kevin Putkonen had a triple in a 1-for-4 performance at the plate. Michael Johnson and Brad Moss had one hit each for the Bulldogs as well.

Samford's Josh Martin (4-2) pitched 6.2 innings giving up just two runs on seven hits and striking out four batters to take the loss. Tyler Vanderheiden, Joseph Burns and Arthur Strauss also saw time on the mound for Samford.

For Wofford, Landon Bennett went 2-for-4 with two RBI to lead the Terriers at the plate. Konstantine Diamaduros and Josh McKinney also had two hits each for Wofford.

Wofford's Tom Dolinak (4-6) pitched 7.0 innings, allowing just one run on four hits to earn the win for the Terriers. John Cornely pitched the final 2.0 innings to earn his ninth save of the season.

Samford had a chance to take an early lead, as the Bulldogs had runners on second and third with no outs in the bottom of the first inning. However, a ground out by Saxon Butler that failed to move the runners, a strike out by Brandon Miller and a fly out by Phillip Ervin ended the threat.

Wofford put the first run on the scoreboard in the top of the second inning. With one out in the inning, McKinney doubled down the left-field line. With two outs, McKinney advanced to third base on a wild pitch. Bennett then singled to left field to drive in McKinney for a 1-0 Wofford lead.

Samford answered with a run of its own in the bottom of the second inning. Putkonen tripled to lead off the inning. With one out in the inning, Ballard grounded out to second base to drive in Putkonen to tie the score at 1-1.

Wofford plated the game-winning run in the top of the fourth inning. With one out, McKinney reached base on an infield single. After McKinney advanced to second base on a ground out by David Roney, McKinney scored on a single to left field by Bennett for a 2-1 Wofford lead.

Neither team could score over the final five and a half innings as Wofford walked away with the 2-1 win. The Terriers' win evens the series, following Samford's 7-1 win on Friday night.

Samford and Wofford will wrap up the series with a game Sunday at 1 p.m. at Joe Lee Griffin Field. The game can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu. Fans can also follow the game online via GameTracker at the link below.

GameTracker For Sunday's Game