Proctor Tosses Complete Game Shutout in Baseball's Second Day Split with Salem
SALEM, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team split with the Salem Tigers in their doubleheader on Sunday winning game one 7-0 and dropping game two 7-6.
Salem hit FSU's first three batters with a 1-2-3 half inning, as senior Max Proctor got the nod for the Bobcats, striking out one and only allowing two hits and leaving two strandedin his initial outing. Frostburg got things started in the second as three Bobcats singled in junior Mikey Guy, freshman Ryan Bouma, and junior Randy Steen. With bases loaded and two outs, freshman Logan Helser hitt a sacrifice fly to score Guy for a 1-0 Frostburg lead. The game went into the bottom of the second with two Bobcats stranded on base, as a ground out and a double play by Frostburg's defense moved the game along to the third for six batters and six outs.
Guy kicked things off for FSU in the fourth, reaching first on a single up the middle. Bouma followed it up with a double, sending Guy home for a 2-0 score. Steen, at the plate, singled to send Bouma through home plate to push FSU's advantage to 3-0, while Steen was able to advance to second on the throw. Senior Aidan Duda, with his second at-bat of the day, earned an RBI on his single due to Steen coming in to score for a 4-0 game. With the next two batters out, freshman Jackson Schalick earned a walk and junior Danny Estrada was hit by a pitch to load the bases, but all three runners were left on. With Proctor picking up another strikeout and Frostburg's outfield catching two fly balls, the game moved to the fifth.
Bouma, taking one to the arm, and a hit by Steen placed them on base in the top half of the fifth, but both were stranded. Proctor pitched a walk, but a ground out, pop out, and strikeout for three straight outs would leave the runner at first. To begin the sixth, the first two batters for FSU were out, as a walk and stolen base by Schalick placed him on second. Estrada, in the box, knocked a single up the middle, bringing in Schalick to push the Bobcat's ahead 5-0. With Estrada set at first, senior Ethan Kiple saw his first hit of the day, sending the ball over the far left fence for a two-run addition and a seven run-lead for FSU going into the bottom of the inning. Three up, three down, with Proctor recording another strikeout moved the game to the final inning.
A double by Steen would leave him deserted after a double play and a strikeout by Salem's pitcher. Proctor, still on the mound, struck one out while FSU's defense collected a double play to end the game with the Bobcats on top 7-0.
Proctor pitched the full game moving his overall record to 5-1 on the season, recording five strikeouts and only allowing five hits on 83 pitches. Steen went 4-for-4 from the plate with one RBI and a run, with Guy following behind him going 3-for-4 and scoring two. Kiple led in RBI as his home run brought in two.
Steen, the leadoff hitter to start game two, set foot on first after an error by the Tiger's third baseman, as Steen then took a chance and stole second. Kiple followed up hitting into a fielder's choice, allowing him to reach first, with Steen awarded third base after an interference. Bouma, hitting a sacrifice fly, set Steen up for the first score of the game, along with Kiple moving to second. With two outs recorded, Estrada made contact with the ball, singling as well, scoring Kiple for a 2-0 Bobcat lead. Sophomore Joe Pippin, on the mound for FSU in game two, obtained two outs, but a walk and an advancement to third was awarded to the Tiger's third hole, as FSU caught a fly ball to leave one on.
Junior Christian Shertzer doubled for the lone hit of the second for Frostburg, as Pippin gave up two hits but would not allow any runs, sending FSU back to the top of the lineup for inning three. Steen, with another hit, got to first and then took second, as Kiple reached base on a walk. With two runners on, Guy delivered with a homer to right field giving FSU a 5-0 edge. The next two batters earned outs, seeing Helser with the bat, as he knocked a solo homer to left-center putting the Bobcats up by six to go into the bottom of the third. No hits and a strikeout dealt from Pipping put Frostburg back at the plate for the fourth inning.
Both teams saw a quiet fourth inning offensively, as Pippin picked up two strikeouts and left two Tigers on. Salem managed to keep FSU from scoring in the fifth, leaving Kiple on second and Bouma on first after a walk and hit by pitch. Freshman Evan Biddle was grabbed from the bullpen to pitch the fifth, as two walks and a single loaded the bases for the Tigers. A sacrifice fly earned Salem their first score, as the Tigers kept runners on first and second. With one out, a home run brought in three runs seeing the score at 6-4. FSU decided to retire Biddle and put junior Todd Murphy on the bump, as Murphy threw a strikeout and a fly out to get the Bobcats out of the inning.
Senior Justin Jimenez was patient at the plate, being the only Bobcat to get on and be left on base in the sixth. Junior Nate Vermillion was called in to deal in the bottom of the inning, striking out two combined with a pop out. Frostburg was unable to add to their score in their final at-bats, as Vermillion continued to throw, getting Salem to two outs, but a double and a single from the Tigers would tie the game at 6-6. Another pitching change for the Bobcats brought graduate Ben Vok to the mound to try and move the game into extras, but a quick single would bring in the winning run for Salem, causing FSU to drop game two 7-6.
Four Bobcats earned a hit in game two as Guy led with two hits and three RBI, while Pippin dealt three strikeouts from the bump followed by Vermillion with two.
With the conclusion of today's doubleheader, Frostburg's overall record stands at 27-11 while Salem's sits at 26-15. FSU is back in action on Tuesday, April 23 at 3 PM as they take on Slippery Rock in a nine-innning non-conference game at Bob Wells Field. For more information, visit frostburgsports.com.
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