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Thursday, March 14, 2002
Eldred's walk-off home run
lifts FIU over Ball State, 4-3
 rad
Eldred hit a towering two-run home run with two outs in the
bottom of the ninth inning, lifting FIU (18-4) to a 4-3 come-from-behind
victory over Ball State (4-6), Thursday night at University Park.
Eldred's walk-off homer, his ninth of the season, scored Solomon
Frieder who had walked as a pinch hitter with one out and
made a winner out of FIU relief pitcher Derek Taylor (2-0)
who tossed two scoreless innings.
Ball State scored all its runs in the first inning off Golden
Panthers starter Arthur Santos. Three-straight hits, including
a two RBI double by Paul Henry plated the first two Cardinals
runs. After Santos retired the next two Ball State batters, Matt
Deckman singled home Henry, for a 3-0 lead.
Santos settled down from there. After giving up four hits
in the first inning, he allowed just two hits over the next six
innings with seven strikeouts.
The Golden Panthers finally got on the scoreboard in the fourth
inning against Ball State starter Luke Hagerty. With one
out, Eldred singled, advanced to second on a Tommy Duenas
single and scored on a two-out hit by Alex Suarez.
FIU chased Hagerty in the sixth with its second run on a Dennis
Diaz RBI single and threatened for more, with runners at
the corners and one out. But Ball State reliever Brian Lynch
entered the game, forced a groundout and popout and ended the
threat.
Lynch seemed in control from then on, giving up only one hit,
a leadoff double to Hector Nunez in the eighth inning,
but no more until the ninth.
After retiring Alex Ansoleaga on a ground out to open
the ninth, Lynch (0-1) walked Frieder before striking out Bernard
Gonzalez for the second out. Eldred blasted Lynch's first
pitch, sending it high over the left-center field scoreboard,
and helped the Golden Panthers to their eighth-straight win.
In picking up the victory, Taylor, a junior from Lakewood,
Calif., has now thrown 171/3 innings over nine relief appearances
without giving up a run. He has 22 strikeouts and has walked
only two.
The loss snapped a two-game win streak for the Cardinals.
Following a day off Friday, FIU returns to the diamond Saturday
night at 7:00 p.m. against Rider. |