Oral Roberts Breaks Open Game Late, Downs Michigan

Saturday, March 23

Lawrence, Kan.

3:00 PM CT

Michigan

3-12

Oral Roberts

13-8

Oral Roberts

Michigan

3/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- A pair of Oral Roberts sophomores -- catcher David Castillo and pitcher Rene' Recio -- led the Golden Eagles to an 11-4 win over the University of Michigan baseball team in a neutral-site meeting Saturday afternoon (March 23) at the University of Kansas' Hoglund Ballpark.

Castillo went 5-for-6 in the game, including a run-scoring double in the fifth to snap a 1-1 tie and a three-run homer in the sixth to provide insurance. He scored three times and drove in four runs, including the game-winner. The double was Castillo's 13th of the season and homer was his sixth. His four runs driven in pushed his team-leading total to 32.

On the mound Recio (3-3) worked seven innings to record the win, allowing Michigan nine hits and four runs. He fanned 11 and allowed just one walk. Recio has a team-leading 48 strikeouts in 38.2 innings for the ORU Golden Eagles (13-8).

The starting pitchers -- Recio and Michigan junior LHP Rich Hill (Milton, Mass./Milton HS) -- put up some impressive strikeout numbers early in the game as each had seven through four innings with the score tied a 1-1. Hill (0-2) took the loss as he worked the first six innings and allowed nine hits and seven runs to go along with the seven strikeouts.

Oral Roberts opened the first inning with a run as the first four batters reached base on two walks and two singles. A bases-loaded walk to cleanup batter Wilton Reynolds forced in the run.

The Wolverines (3-12) reached the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth inning. Sophomore LF Brandon Roberts (Arlington, Texas/Martin HS) singled to left and he reached second when sophomore DH Jake Fox (Greenfield, Ind./Indianapolis Cathedral HS) had a pop fly fall in for a single. With two outs junior 2B Jordan Cantalamessa (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) lined a double into the corner in left, the first of his three hits. Roberts scored to tie the game at 1-1, but Fox thrown out at the plate on a 7-6-2 relay to end the inning.

ORU regained the lead in the top of the fifth on a leadoff walk and a long double off the wall in center by Castillo. U-M freshman CF Matt Butler (Glendale Heights, Ill./Driscoll Catholic HS) made a gallant attempt to make the catch on Castillo's double but rammed the wall and did not come up with the ball.

Castillo iced the game in the sixth inning with a long three-run homer to the right of the 375 sign in left-center.

Senior LHP Kirk Taylor (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington HS) replaced Hill to start the seventh inning and surrendered a homer to the first batter he faced, DH Dennis Bigley. Taylor allowed four runs (three earned) in his two innings of work.

Freshman RHP Phil Tognetti (Newhall, Calif./Hart HS) worked the ninth inning, allowing one single, Castillo's fifth hit of the game, and he recorded one strikeout.

The Wolverines added a pair of runs in the sixth inning as junior SS Brock Koman (Pueblo, Colo./South HS) was hit by a pitch and scored on the first collegiate triple by Roberts. Fox knocked in Roberts with an infield out.

The Wolverines chased Recio in the eighth inning as senior/junior 1B Mike Sokol (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle HS) drew the lone walk allowed by Recio on the day. Sokol moved to third on Koman's single to left-center and he scored on the third hit of the day by Roberts. ORU reliever Andrew Sanderson entered the game with two on and no outs and faced just two batters to escape the eighth with a double-play grounder and a strikeout.

Sanderson hit Cantalamessa leading off the ninth and gave up a single to sophomore 3B Brandon Jominy (Coral Springs, Fla./Westminster Academy) before striking out the final three Wolverines to end the game.

The Wolverines (3-12) are scheduled to close out the weekend series by facing host Kansas Sunday (March 24) with sophomore RHP Jim Brauer (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS) on the mound. Brauer is 1-2 with a 6.43 ERA. The U-M game vs. Kansas will start approximately 30 minutes following the completion of the Kansas vs. Oral Roberts game slated to start at 11 a.m. CST.

N O T E S

Junior LHP Rich Hill, with seven strikeouts in six innings vs. ORU, has fanned 22 in his last 16 innings. He leads the team with 33 strikeouts (22 innings). Hill moved his active career-leading strikeout total to 158 in 123 innings.

Sophomore LF Brandon Roberts and junior 2B Jordan Cantalamessa paced the Wolverines with three hits each to account for six of Michigan's 10 hits vs. Oral Roberts. It was Cantalamessa's 28th career multiple-hit game and his fourth career three-hit game. Roberts has 11 career multiple-hit games and it was his second three-hit game of both the season and his career.

Junior 3B/SS Brock Koman has reached base all 15 games this season and 23 in a row over the last two seasons.

Michigan's hitting leaders after 15 games (13 at-bat minimum) include: sophomore LF Brandon Roberts (.367, 18-for-49); 3B/SS Brock Koman (.350, 21-for-60); junior catcher Jason Wuerfel (Cedar, Mich./Glen Lake HS) at .333 (6-for-18); junior OF Gino Lollio (Cape Coral, Fla./Mariner HS) at .281 (16-for-57); and sophomore C/3B Jake Fox (.275, 11-for-40).

Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423