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GW Runs-Off With a Win in Series Opener against Duquesne
May 17, 2007
ARLINGTON, VA - George Washington senior Mickey Shupin (Sea Girt, NJ/Wall) took advantage of two Duquesne throwing errors to win the game for the Colonials, as he scored all the from first after a failed pick-off attempt.
The dramatic victory improved GW's record to 21-31-1, 12-13 in the A-10, and more importantly, kept alive their chances of advancing to the Atlantic 10 Tournament. With two games remaining, the Colonials trail St. Bonaventure for the sixth and final playoff spot by one and a half games.
Shupin, the school's career stolen base record holder, began tearing around the bases when pitcher Travis Rice's throw over to first was in the dirt. By the time first baseman Aaron Janusey retrieved the errant toss, Shupin was already half-way around second base. Janusey flung the ball to third in a vain attempt to nail Shupin, but his throw sailed down the left field line, allowing Shupin to come home with the winning run.
GW starting pitcher Pat Lehman (Fair Lawn, NJ/Fair Lawn) pitched the first complete game of his career to earn his team high fifth win this season (5-7). The hard-throwing sophomore allowed seven hits and three runs while striking out four batters in his nine innings of work.
After Duquesne (22-27, 10-15 A-10) had pushed across a run in the top of the third to take the early 1-0 lead, GW equaled the score in their half of the frame. Whitey Wallace (Syracuse, NY/Philips Exeter Academy) tripled to the fence in right field to break up the no-hitter and put himself just ninety feet away from home. Doug Eizen (Philadelphia, PA/The Haverford School) followed with a sac-fly to center to tie the game at one with his sixth RBI this season.
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The teams exchanged scoreless fourth and fifth innings before the Colonials used heads-up base running to plate two runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 3-1 lead. On a perfectly executed hit-and-run, Charlie Kruer (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) went from first to third on a single hit by Curtis Eward (Oak Hill, VA/Oakton). Andrew Abokhair (Ashburn, VA/Broad Run) and Tim Reeves (Cumming, GA/North Forsyth) then followed with consecutive RBI-singles into left field to plate both Kruer and Eward, respectively.
That lead would be short-lived, however, as Duquesne's designated hitter, Mike Carroll, blasted a two-run home into left field to tie the game once again, 3-3. The Colonials put a couple of runners on base in the eighth, but did not score again until Shupin's winning run in the final frame.
For GW, the win was their second straight against Duquesne, dating back to last year, when the Colonials defeated the Dukes, 5-4, in the final game of the regular season, behind Charlie Kruer's (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning.
George Washington and Duquesne will continue their three-game series Friday, at 1:00 p.m.
Game Notes: Whitey Wallace's triple in the third was just his second career triple, and his first since 2005 ... GW earned their first win of the season in a game when they were tied after seven innings of play and just their third victory when scoring between three and five runs ... Mickey Shupin, Tom Zebroski (Port Washington, NY/Paul Schreiber) and Curtis Eward all had two hits for the Colonials ... Zebroski now has 10 hits in his 14 at-bats and has raised his batting average by 32 points in the past four games.
