Tousa, Leveque Spark Wolverines Over Buccaneers

Friday, March 10

Charleston, S.C.

12:00 PM

Michigan

4-6

Charleston Southern

14-10

Michigan

Charleston Southern

3/10/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Junior 2B Scott Tousa (Dallas, Texas/Lake Highlands HS) and freshman RHP Tim Leveque (Northridge, Calif./Crespi HS) sparked the Michigan baseball team to an 11-4 win over Charleston Southern Friday (March 10) at Buccaneer Field. The Wolverines (4-6) won for the second game in a row for the first time this season, while the host Buccaneers dropped to 14-10.

Michigan pounded out a season-best 14 hits, but made a season-high five errors as all four of the CSU runs were unearned. In Michigan's four wins this season the Wolverines have allowed a total of one earned run.

Tousa collected career highs with four hits (4-for-6) and four RBI in the win. He scored three times and hit his second homer of the season (and career). Tousa singled and scored in the first inning and came through with RBI singles in the third and fifth innings. He launched a two-run homer in the seventh. In fact, he was robbed by CSU first baseman Brad French in the ninth inning in a bid for a fifth hit.

Leveque collected his first win as a Wolverine with five innings of four-hit relief that included a career-best -- and Michigan season-high -- eight strikeouts. Leveque kept his team-leading ERA at 0.00 and he took over the team lead in strikeouts (12). He has worked 9.2 innings in three outings.

Junior RHP Vince Pistilli (Highland, Ind./Highland HS) started the game for the Wolverines and worked the first four innings. He allowed four hits and four walks and fanned two, lowering his ERA to 2.30 as all three runs he allowed were unearned.

After exchanging a pair of unearned runs in the first inning, the Wolverines scored five times in the third inning, the top run-producing inning of the young season. Freshman RF Gino Lollio (Cape Coral, Fla./Mariner HS) snapped the 2-2 tie with a two-run single, his first career game-winning hit.

The Wolverines added a pair of runs in the fifth inning as freshman CF Blake Rutkowski (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South HS) doubled and scored on a Tousa single. Freshman 3B Brock Koman (Pueblo, Colo./South HS) doubled in Tousa.

While Tousa paced the offense with four hits vs. CSU, the Wolverines had two hits each from Koman, senior LF Rob Bobeda (DeWitt, Mich./DeWitt HS) and sophomore DH Dan Dombos (Kalamazoo, Mich./Mattawan HS). Dombos was 2-for-3 with two walks and he reached base five times. He moved his batting average up 175 points to .375 (3-for-8).

Michigan continues its three-game weekend set in Charleston, S.C., on Saturday (March 11, 3 p.m.) by facing host Charleston Southern. Senior LHP Bryan Cranson (Bronson, Mich./Bronson HS), who is 1-1 with a 6.30 ERA, is scheduled to start on the mound.

Michigan faces Kent State University on Sunday (March 12). The game time has been moved to 11 a.m. (from 10 a.m.) and the game is now slated to be played at College Park in Charleston and not at CSU as indicated on previous schedules.

N O T E S

Junior 2B Scott Tousa jumped his batting average 90 points, from .200 to .290, with the first four-hit game of his Wolverine career. He went 4-for-6 vs. Charleston Southern, his 23rd career multiple-hit game.

Tri-captain Kevin Quinn (Midland, Mich./Midland HS) has an active four-game hitting streak and Scott Tousa has a three-game streak.

Brock Koman collected his fourth multiple-hit game of the season vs. Charleston Southern and he now shares the team lead in doubles (4) with Jordan Cantalamessa (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS).

Michigan's baseball team has a birthday weekend in Charleston. The birthday Wolverines include: freshman CF Blake Rutkowski, who turned 19 today (March 10); freshman LHP Rich Hill (Milton, Mass./Milton HS), who will celebrate his 20th birthday on Saturday (March 11); and sophomore LHP Jeff Trzos (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington HS), who turns 20 on Sunday (March 12).

Among regulars with at least 18 at bats, Brock Koman (14-for-39) leads the Wolverines in hitting with a .359 batting average. He is followed by Scott Tousa (.290, 9-for-31), senior 3B Kevin Quinn (.278, 5-for-18), freshman IF/OF Jordan Cantalamessa (.276, 8-for-29) and junior C David Parrish (.265, 9-for-34).

Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423