Engineers tool Baseball in last turn at the bat

The bottom of the ninth was again Penn's foil as host Lehigh struck last. The Penn baseball team may have been down when it traveled to Lehigh yesterday, but that didn't stop the Engineers from kicking the Quakers. For the second game in a row, the Quakers (18-19) were licked by their opponent's last licks, as they fell to Lehigh (16-21), 5-4, in the bottom of the ninth inning. With the loss, Penn -- which came into the game having lost four in a row and the Lou Gehrig Division crown to Princeton -- fell below .500 for the first time since March 29, when a 10-9 loss to Lafayette dropped it to 8-9. "It's really frustrating," Penn coach Bob Seddon said. "And it's not just two in a row we've lost a lot like this? So obviously we can't get it done late in games." Penn's road record since returning from its spring break trip to Florida also fell to 2-9, not counting the Liberty Bell Classic at Veterans Stadium. The Quakers have lost eight in a row away from Murphy Field. The fateful ninth inning initially seemed very rosy for the Quakers, as they had an excellent opportunity to break a 4-4 stalemate and take a lead and a chance for a win into Lehigh's half of the inning. Penn first baseman Anthony Napolitano drew a one-out walk from Lehigh hurler Ryan Parish, and second baseman Nick Italiano -- who had three hits and two RBI on the day -- reached on a bunt single. Third baseman Stephen Glass, who had replaced Oliver Hahl in the field and at the top of the order, lined out to Lehigh shortstop Chip McAteer. But when McAteer tried to double Italiano off at first, his throw flew over the head of first baseman Patrick Hollander and into right field. However, the ball did go far enough for Napolitano to score, and Seddon held him up at third. With Italiano on second and Napolitano 90 feet away from scoring the go-ahead run, and with left fielder James Mullen stepping up to the plate, the Quakers seemed to be in excellent shape. To that point, Mullen had three hits in the game, including a home run in the fifth inning that put his team up, 4-2. Indeed, Penn's offense was based around both Mullen and Italiano yesterday. The two combined for six of Penn's eight hits and drove in three of its four runs. However, Parish -- who recorded the win to improve to 4-3 on the year -- got Mullen to pop up to second, and the Quakers threat was vanquished. In the bottom of the frame, Penn relief pitcher Dan Fitzgerald, who took the loss to fall to 1-3, walked third baseman Justin Pagan and McAteer. Fitzgerald, who had pitched two innings of two-hit, one-run ball, was lifted in favor of freshman Paul Grumet. The first batter he faced, was Hollander -- the nation's batting leader heading into the game with average of .505 -- who reached base when Grumet failed to pick up his bunt attempt, a miscue that loaded the bases with nobody out. The next hitter, center fielder Jeff Pietrak, singled to center, driving in Pagan and ending Penn's afternoon. "It's the way we lose them," Seddon said. "It's a giveaway type of thing, where we walk a couple guys and don't handle something right, and it's always a base hit that ends it. "It's a shame, because they play hard, and it gets down to the nitty-gritty, and we just don't get it done." Pietrak also ended Penn's non-conference schedule. Even with the loss yesterday, the Quakers compiled a relatively solid 11-10 record against foes from outside the Ivy League. The loss spoiled what was a respectable effort from little-used starter Matt Hepler, who went six innings and gave up four runs on seven hits while striking out four. Hepler entered the game with a 12.12 ERA in 16 1/3 innings of work. "Matt Hepler pitched really well," Seddon said. The Quakers jumped out to an early lead in the second inning, when they tagged Lehigh starter Brian Andalman for two runs. Penn center fielder Kevin McCabe drew a walk with one down. Catcher Ralph Vasami then doubled to left-center field to drive him in and break the scoreless tie. After Napolitano grounded out, Italiano singled to drive in Vasami and collect an RBI, his first of two. Penn didn't relinquish this lead until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Hepler, armed with a 4-2 lead, began to unravel. With nobody out, Lehigh second baseman Andrew Piccola singled to left and went to second on a wild pitch. He then scored on Pagan's single to left-center. Hepler was then lifted in favor of Fitzgerald, who plunked the first batter he faced -- McAteer -- sending Pagan to second. Hollander then flied out to center, allowing Pagan to tag up and advance to third. Pagan then scored on Pietrak's sac fly to right, knotting the game at four.

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