NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion Monarchs scored in each of the first three innings to take a lead they would not relinquish, en route to a 7-3 win over the VMI Keydets in non-conference baseball action Tuesday at Bud Matheny Complex in Norfolk, Va. The game was VMI's final road game of the regular season, and was contested on a cool night that was laden with drizzle in Norfolk.
Old Dominion (24-21) took advantage of four Keydet (19-30) errors to score a quartet of unearned runs, including three of the first four runs of the game. The loss robbed VMI of a chance to close the year having defeated all but two of its scheduled in-state Division I foes, as the Keydets came in having not posted victories over Virginia, Liberty and the Monarchs.
Offensively, Red Dowdell led VMI with a 2 for 4 night, while five members of the home team had two hits apiece, and Jordan Negrini and Josiah Burney scored two runs each. Campbell Henkel (1-6) took the loss despite giving up just one earned run in six innings, while Brett Harris, the ODU starter, moved to 1-1 by shutting out VMI for the first four frames.
ODU drew first blood in the opening inning, when P.J. Higgins tripled to right center with two out and Negrini followed with a ground ball to third. Ray Lopez fielded the ball, but his throw bounced past Cody Holder at first base for an E5, allowing Higgins to score the opening run of the game.
That margin grew in the second, when Burney led off with an infield hit. He went to second on a infield out and scored on a RBI single by shortstop Tyler Urps, giving ODU a 2-0 lead.
The home team added two more runs in the third after an error by Henkel led to two unearned tallies, but the Keydets got a run back in the fifth. Lopez led off with a walk, but then appeared to be picked off by reliever Andy Roberts. The Keydet third baseman evaded Urps' tag at second, however, and that paid off moments later. Nick Dwyer hit a groundball to first baseman Burney, who flipped to Roberts for the out. The ODU pitcher dropped the ball, however, after briefly running into Dwyer in the basepath and did so with his back to home plate, allowing Lopez to score from second base to cut the deficit to 4-1.
The Keydets notched another run in the seventh, when Lopez legged out a looping double down the right field line. Dwyer followed with a single up the middle, scoring Lopez to make it 4-2, ODU.
VMI went to closer John Garrett for the seventh, but with one out, Ben Verlander reached on an error. He promptly stole second as Matt Winn appeared to have trouble getting grip on the wet baseball. Verlander then scored on a double by Josh Eldridge to make it a three-run game, 5-2.
The Keydets came back with a run in the eighth, when Jordan Tarsovich led off with a walk. One out later, he advanced to second on a wild pitch and, after Winn struck out, Tarsovich scored on a single by Dowdell to cut the Monarch lead back to two, 5-3.
The Monarchs put the game away in the ninth, however, with two key insurance runs. Negrini led off with a single, and after a sacrifice bunt, Burney singled him home to make it a 6-3 game. Burney would then score on a throwing error later in the inning, accounting for the final margin despite a Keydet threat in the ninth. Berkley Hawkins and Dwyer had back to back singles with two outs in that inning, putting VMI just one batter shy of bringing the tying run to the plate, but with the drizzle still continuing, Brandon Diamond grounded out to end the game and VMI's road schedule.
VMI's leading hitter Rob Dickinson sat out the game to rest a shoulder injury, incurred two weekends ago against Campbell.
VMI baseball will now break for final exams and return to action May 10 against the Winthrop Eagles. First pitch at Gray-Minor Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m.
