Maryland
Towson
Four-run Fifth Propels Terps To Victory
3/11/2003 7:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 11, 2003
College Park, Md. - The Maryland Terrapins (5-7, 0-0 ACC) used a four-run fifth inning to help hand Towson (2-3) a 7-5 defeat on Tuesday afternoon.
The Terps got solid hitting throughout the lineup to protect the lead for starter Jared Stuart (1-0), who got his first victory of the season.
Leading the way was outfielder Daryl Whitmer (Waldorf, Md.), who continued his hot hitting with a 3-for-5 performance to go along with three runs scored and a stolen base. Whitmer is hitting a scalding 6-for-10 over the past two games, with five runs scored, four RBI and three stolen bases.
After moving into sole possession of eighth place on the Terps' all-time stolen base list yesterday against Marist, Whitmer's swiped bag today gives him 35 for his career, tying him for seventh with Steve Neuberger (1993-96).
Also contributing with a 3-for-4, two-RBI day was catcher Bobby Ryan (Damascus, Md.), who raised his season average to an Atlantic Coast Conference-leading .475. Ryan has not missed a beat since coming to the Terrapins from Radford, hitting safely in 10 of 12 games and reaching base in all 12.
In addition, outfielder Will Frazier (Mitchellville, Md.) extended his hitting streak to eight games.
The hitting may be garnering the accolades, but the starting pitching has been very steady over the past four games. Stuart (Corning, N.Y.), a senior who started 13 games for the Terps last year, pitched six innings, giving up four runs, only two of which were earned due to a three-error performance in the field by the Terps in the top of the sixth.
Terp starters have pitched at least six innings in each of the past four games, though the team has won only half of those games. The team's top four starters are all keeping opponents' batting averages below .240, led by Sean Kane (.188) and Steve Schmoll (.191).
Matt Basinger (Connellsville, Pa.) and Brooks Norris (Baltimore, Md.) gave the Terps solid relief, pitching a combined three innings and giving up one run.
Norris, who started last Tuesday against UMBC, picked up his first save of the year, getting three straight Tigers to fly out after a lead-off single.
The Terps will face Virginia Commonwealth tomorrow at 4 p.m., and will attempt to avenge a 15-6 loss last week. Virginia Commonwealth rides a 12-game win streak into Shipley Field.
