LEXINGTON, Va.- A two-run home run in the first inning was all that High Point could muster, as seniors Duke Acors and Jeff DeMara pitched VMI to a 9-2 victory in the second game of a weekend Big South Conference series Saturday afternoon. The win gives the Keydets the series win after defeating the Panthers 10-7 yesterday, and improves VMI's record to 23-25, 8-12 in the Big South. High Point falls to 18-32, 6-17 in league play.
Acors (Richmond, Va./Atlee) earned his 13th career win, tying him for second place on the all-time list at VMI, by pitching 6.2 innings, allowing seven hits and two runs while striking out six batters. Acors now stands at 3-3 on the season, while DeMara (Chesapeake, Va./Great Bridge) came on to record the final seven outs, allowing only two hits while notching his 29th appearance of the season.
“Duke Acors did a nice job of settling down after the first inning,” said VMI head coach Marlin Ikenberry. “He was able to give us 6.2 innings strong, and Jeff came in and closed it down for us. Our offense did a great job against (Eammon) Portice, who is one of the best arms in the league as only a freshman. We got a lot of key hits and runs and we put a lot of pressure on him to get him out of sync.”
Not to be outdone, the Keydet bats remained hot for the second straight day and made the most of their opportunities. High Point starter Eammon Portice (Oakland Park, Fla.) worked 5.2 innings and took the loss to fall to 5-4, as he allowed seven hits and seven runs, only five earned, while issuing four walks, hitting two batters and throwing a pair of wild pitches. Junior Mark Shorey came on in relief and worked the final 2.1 innings, allowing two runs on two hits while walking two batters as well.
The Keydets fell behind in the first inning for the second straight day, when a two-run shot by senior centerfielder Chris Ramirez gave the Panthers a 2-0 lead. After Shorey singled in the next at bat then stole second base, Acors recovered to retired the next three batters he faced to escape the frame without further damage.
VMI cut the margin in half in the second inning without the benefit of a hit. Sophomore leftfielder Jacoby Fields reached after striking out but beating the throw to first base after a wild pitch, then moved to third base thanks to a pair of sacrifice bunts. A fielding error on a groundball to the shortstop allowed Fields to score the home team's first run of the game, cutting the lead to 2-1 in the second.
That's how the score would remain until the VMI fourth, when sophomore catcher Chase Buchanan came through with his second go-ahead hit in as many days, this time a two-run double down the left field line. Two batters later, Buchanan came around from second to score on a groundball up the middle, putting the Keydets up by a 4-2 count.
VMI scored in each of the three following frames to put the game out of reach. In the fifth inning, an RBI double by junior centerfielder B.T. Good brought home one run, while senior rightfielder Elliott Erbe came around when an errant throw by the catcher to third base on a stolen base attempt flew into right field. The sixth inning saw Fields hit an RBI single to left field, while senior shortstop Matt Smith provided the fireworks in the seventh inning, when he legged out a two-run, inside-the-park homerun to right-center field, Smith's second career four-bagger.
Only two Keydets managed multiple hits in the game, as Matt Smith and Sweppenhiser each had a pair. Smith and Buchanan each brought home a pair of runs, while Good scored a pair of runs. Seven of the nine Keydet starters recorded a hit, while eight of the starters scored runs.
Shorey paced the Panther offense with three hits in his four trips to the plate. However, Ramirez accounted for all of the Panther scoring with his two-run homer that scored junior left fielder Anthony Bell in the first.
VMI and High Point wrap up the weekend series Sunday afternoon, with first pitch at Patchin Field scheduled for 1 p.m. The Keydets will honor their senior class before the contest, with pre-game ceremonies starting at approximately 12:40 p.m.
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