Central Michigan University Athletics
Central Michigan University
East Tenn St
CMU Baseball Opens With a Split
2/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 28, 2004
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - Central Michigan University opened the 2004 baseball season with a doubleheader split here Saturday against East Tennessee State University.
The host Buccanneers won the first game by a 14-2 margin and CMU battled back in the second outing for a 12-5 decision.
Jeff Opalewski was the starter and loser in the opener. He went two innings and gave up seven hits and seven runs, six being earned. Ryan Cremeans went the next two and two-third innings and was touched for eight hits and three runs (two earned). Jasons Cairns (two and one-third innings and one earned run) and James Ricchio tossed the final inning (four hits and three earned runs). Bryan Mitzel had a first-inning RBI single to score one Chippewa run while Kurtis Wells tripled in the last marker in the seventh. Wells was the lone Chippewa with two hits in the game.
The Chippewas won game two in convincing fashion, slamming out 15 hits off three ETSU hurlers.
In addition to CMU's heavy hitting, the hurling of redshirt freshman Jayson Ruhlman was the big story. The lefty went six innings, allowed two hits and three runs - all were unearned. He walked three and fanned eight to collect the win.
Senior T.J. Johnson, another left-hander, went the next two frames and gave up four hits and two runs, one earned. He didn't walk anybody and struck out two. Relief ace David LeMieux went the final scoreless inning, scattering one hit and striking out one.
The Chippewas plated two in the first inning on a two-out single by Jeff LaFavors Jr., but ETSU countered with a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the first. CMU took the lead for good with three more runs in the third, one on an RBI single by Kurtis Wells and two more on a triple by LaFavors.
The Buccanneers added an unearned run in the third to cut the deficit to 5-3 when the Chippewas scored five times in the fourth to blow it open. The big blow was a grand slam homer by junior Jim Geldhof. Wells followed with a double and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Dan Griesbaum Jr.
CMU capped the scoring with two in the top of the ninth on an RBI triple by Derek Schaller and Brian Campbell's run-scoring single.
Chase Welker paced the Chippewa attack with three hits while J.T. Jones, Wells, Geldhof and LaFavors each had two.
Game three of the series is set for here Sunday at 1 p.m. Ty Dunham will be pitching for CMU.
Live coverage can be found on the East Tennessee State website at www.etsubucs.com.
