Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
UNLV
Wildcats Stroll Past Rebels, 20-6
3/12/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 12, 2010
LAS VEGAS - Patience is a virtue and the Northwestern baseball team put that adage to good work Friday in the first game of a doubleheader against UNLV. The Wildcats took an astounding 17 walks in cruising to a 20-6 victory over the Rebels.
The Wildcats jumped on the Rebels for two runs off Billy Wardell in the top of the first inning without the benefit of a hit. Trevor Stevens and Arby Fields drew consecutive walks and pulled off a successful double steal. Stevens came home on a sacrifice fly by Chris Lashmet and Fields scooted home from third on a throwing error by the UNLV catcher when Paul Snieder stole second.
But the hosts knotted the score right back up in the bottom half of the frame against Francis Brooke as Brandon Bayardi and RJ Arnold posted RBI singles.
NU reclaimed the lead in the top of the second on Stevens' two-out single that scored Quentin Williams. The Wildcats extended their lead to 11-2 in the third as they exploded for eight runs with the first eight batters of the inning reaching base safely. Chad Noble drew the free pass and moved up to second on Northwestern's fourth stolen base in as many innings. With runners on first and third, Snieder's single to left put the 'Cats up two and marked the end of Wardell's day.
Thomas Whitsett replaced Wardell on the mound, but he was greeted rudely by the Wildcats. After a bunt single by Zach Morton, Jack Havey and Williams followed with run-scoring hits before Chris Kontos delivered the huge blow, socking his first career grand slam to extend NU's lead to eight. The Wildcats would tack on one final run in the inning when Stevens scored on a groundout by Noble.
Northwestern added one on to its lead in the fourth as Havey drove in his second run of the game, plating Snieder from second on a single to center that made it 12-2.
Walks continued to help the Wildcats' cause in the sixth. Morton and Snieder drew consecutive free passes to start the inning and Morton would eventually tag and score on a sacrifice fly by Geoff Rowan.
UNLV would get two runs back in its half of the sixth, but Northwestern responded with four in the top of the seventh to put the game out of reach. Noble drove in one run with a single, Havey plated his third RBI of the game and Rowan drove in two with a single to make it 17-4.
Northwestern completed its scoring with three in the eighth with Morton contributing a two-run double and Alex Seyferth posting his first hit and RBI at NU with a single to left.
UNLV finished off the game's scoring with solo tallies in the eighth and ninth.
Noble led NU with three hits as eight different Wildcats had multi-hit games. Morton scored four runs while Stevens, Snieder and Williams drew three walks apiece.
Brooke worked 7 1/3 innings to improve to 3-0 on the season. David Jensen worked the final 1 2/3 innings of relief.
