NORFOLK, Va. (February 26, 2012) - Junior Rob Corsi (Oceanport, N.J.) pitched seven shutout innings to help Rutgers University baseball complete a three-game sweep over Old Dominion University with a 5-1 win on Sunday at Bud Metheny Baseball Complex. RU finished the series hitting .385 (15-39) with runners in scoring position and .489 (23-47) with two outs.
Rutgers improved to 3-3, while Old Dominion dropped to 2-5 as RU has won the last seven in the series. It was the first road three-game series sweep for the Scarlet Knights since taking all three at Georgetown from March 26-28, 2010.
Corsi earned his first win of the season to even his record at 1-1. He completing seven innings, allowing only five hits and two walks to go with four strikeouts. The lefty worked through the leadoff man reaching base in the first four innings with two doubleplays and retired five of the last six batters he faced.
Offensively, sophomore Nick Favatella (Washington Township, N.J.) drove in two runs and senior Patrick Kivlehan (West Nyack, N.Y.) and sophomore Pat Sweeney (Sparta, N.J.) each recorded two hits. Sweeney also scored two runs from the ninth spot in the lineup.
Rutgers scored first for the fourth-straight game on manufactured run in the third inning. Sophomore Brian O'Grady (Warminster, Pa.) led off with a double to right-center and moved to third on a productive groundout by classmate Joe D'Annunzio (Scotch Plains, N.J.). With the infield back, Favatella sent a groundball out to shortstop that allowed O'Grady to come across.
The Scarlet Knights extended their lead to 2-0 in the fourth inning after the first two hitters had been retired. Junior Bill Hoermann (Toms River, N.J.) and Kivlehan each singled to set up Sweeney, who delivered a clutch hit through the left side to bring in Hoermann for the second run of the game.
RU added two more in the seventh on a two-out RBI hit by Favatella to score Sweeney, in addition to an unearned run scored by D'Annunzio on an error.
Sweeney scored the fifth run of the game on a wild pitch in the ninth inning. The Monarchs touched home on an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth.
Senior Ryan Fasano (Stony Point, N.Y.) pitched the final two innings out of the bullpen to close out the game and clinch the sweep.
Rutgers continues its season-opening road trip next weekend in Atlanta, taking on No. 10 Georgia Tech in a three-game series beginning Friday, March 2.
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