Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
South Florida
Wildcats Drop Season Opener to South Florida, 5-2
2/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 10, 2006
Box Score
TAMPA, Fla. - Northwestern's baseball team dropped its 2006 season opener to South Florida 5-2 Friday night in Tampa, Fla. The Bulls scored two runs in the bottom of the third and never looked back to spoil Wildcats' debut. In a game that saw an array of pitchers, junior Dan Schwartz pitched flawlessly. Offensively, sophomore Jake Owens had two hits in the game.
Junior George Kontos (Lincolnwood, Ill./Niles West) started on the mound for the Wildcats and took the loss, giving up three runs. He struck out six.
In the second inning, a bases-loaded single plated two Bulls runs. After another walk reloaded the bases, Kontos induced a towering fly ball to left field. Wildcat left fielder Anthony Wycklendt (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet) raced toward the right field line, caught the ball, and fired a bullet to the plate. The throw reached catcher Pat McMahon (Mundelein, Ill./Carmel) in time for the double play, which ended the third inning.
Northwestern answered with a single run in the top of the fourth inning as freshman Tommy Finn (Valparaiso, Ind./Andrean) drove in his first collegiate run with a bases-loaded fielder's choice to first base. Designated hitter Antonio Mule (Lodi, N.J./Lodi) scored on the play. Mule reached third on a South Florida throwing error after singling to start the inning.
USF plated an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth inning as a leadoff walk came around to score on a two-out single. The leadoff runner moved to second on a walk.
Northwestern got the Bulls' insurance run back in the top of the sixth when Aaron Newman's (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) fielder's choice to second base scored first baseman Stanley Finch (Lubbock, Texas/Cooper) from third. Finch walked and went to third on a Jake Owens (Stevens Point, Wis./Pacelli) single.
Junior Bobby Ferla (Waldwick, N.J./St. Joseph Regional) relieved Kontos to start the bottom of the sixth inning. Ferla threw to three hitters and did not record an out. Senior Julio Siberio (Davie, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) took over for Ferla and gave up a two-run single. Siberio faced four hitters and recorded two outs, including a strikeout. Junior Dan Schwartz (New York, N.Y./Northern Valley Regional) relieved Siberio and pitched one and one-third inning of no-hit baseball. He struck out three.
The score after six complete innings was 5-2 in favor of South Florida.
Neither team would score the rest of the game, as Schwartz and senior Chris Davidson (Huntington Woods, Mich./Berkley) held USF to one hit the final two and one-third innings. Davidson pitched the bottom of the eighth innings and gave up one hit before a ground-ball double play ended the game.
GAME NOTES:
Pinch hitter Tony Vercelli (Wilmington, Ill./Wilmington) singled in his first collegiate at-bat. He lined a single down the right field in the eighth inning.
Freshman Tommy Finn drove in his first collegiate run with a fielder's choice in the fourth inning. There were runners on second and third with one out.
Freshman Jake Wilson (Palatine, Ill./Fremd) saw action at third base.
