University of Maine
Illinois St.
Baseball Falls to Illinois State, 7-1
3/9/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
The University of Maine baseball team fell to Illinois State University this afternoon by a score of 7-1. The loss puts the Black Bears at 4-7 on the season while the Redbirds get their eighth straight, putting their record at 8-3 on the season. Michael Fransoso led the Black Bears on offense after batting 2-for-4 while Troy Black (Mississauga, Ontario) drove in the Maine run on a groundout and also stole a base.
The Black Bears took a 1-0 lead in the top half of the third inning when Troy Black grounded out to first base, scoring Justin Leisenheimer (Middle Village, N.Y.). Leisenheimer had originally reached after drawing a walk. Colin Gay (Franklin, Mass.) advanced to second on the play after singling to get on base, however was left on after Michael Fransoso struck out swinging.
Illinois State responded in the bottom of the fifth inning when Chad Hinshaw drove Mike Hollenbeck in from second base on an RBI single, tying the game at 1-1. Hinshaw advanced to second on the throw home by Black Bear Fran Whitten (Westborough, Mass.). Hollenbeck was left on second base after Kevin Tokarski flied out to Ian Leisenheimer (Middle Village, N.Y.) in left field.
The Redbirds took their first lead of the game in the bottom of the sixth inning when Ty Wiesemeyer reached on a lead off triple and was then driven in on a sacrifice fly to centerfield by Matt Mirabal. Illinois nearly struck again after Zac Johnson hit their second triple of the inning, but Maine pitcher Stephen Perakslis (Abington, Mass.) stood strong and got Mike Hollenbeck to pop out to second to end the inning.
Illinois increased their lead to 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning after Kevin Tokarski doubled to center that one-hopped the fence, scoring Chad Hinshaw and Brett Kay. Hinshaw had reached on a fielder's choice in the previous at bat while Kay reached on a fielding error by Michael Fransoso. After Maine brought in D.J. Voisine (Plainville, Conn.) on a pitching change to replace Stephen Perakslis, Voisine got the first batter he faced, Ty Wiesemeyer to fly out; however Matt Mirabal hit a double to right to score Tokarski. Illinois now had a 5-1 lead. Voisine got the final out of the inning when Zac Johnson flied out to Colin Gay in centerfield.
After a pitching change by the Redbirds, the Black Bears threatened in the top of the eighth inning with the bases loaded and with one out; however were unable to convert. Troy Black had reached after being hit by a pitch for the second time in the game while Fransoso reached on a single to right field, advancing Black to second. Ian Leisenheimer then got the bases loaded on a single to third base that bounced of Illinois States' Zac Johnson and was unable to make a play. Illinois State then brought in relief pitcher Kenny Long, who was able to get out of the jam after striking out Alex Calbick and getting Tyler Patzalek (Burlington, Ontario) to foul out. The score still stood at 5-1, Illinois State.
The Redbirds were able to score their sixth run of the game after Eric Aguilera scored on a wild pitch by D.J. Voisine in the bottom of the eighth inning. Aguilera had reached after on a fielder's choice earlier in the inning. Brett Kay notched the seventh and final run of the game for Illinois State after he was driven in on a sacrifice fly by Chad Hinshaw. Kay got aboard after a single to left center.
After nine innings of play, the Black Bears were defeated by a score of 7-1.
Maine starter Steve Perakslis got the loss on the afternoon for Maine after pitching 6.1 innings and allowing eight hits and five runs, three of which were earned. He also recorded two strikeouts and a walk. His record now stands at 0-2. D.J. Voisine pitched 1.2 innings in relief for Maine. He allowed two hits, two earned runs, and two walks. Illinois State started Chris Razo picked up his second win of the season after pitching seven innings, giving up four hits and one earned run. He also recorded two walks and five strikeouts. Kenny Long picked up his second save of the year after throwing 1.2 innings with two hits and two strikeouts.
The Black Bears will look to bounce back when they battle Bowling Green in their third game of the Winter Haven Tournament tomorrow morning at 10 AM.
