Box Score RUSTON -- Three up, three down usually is a reference to batters. This weekend it was games as the University of Pittsburgh Panthers completed the sweep of the Grambling State University Tigers, winning the third of three weekend games 18-5.
It was not the type of history GSU wanted, but it was historic as Pitt head baseball coach Joe Jordano's team helped him claim his 800th career victory. Pitt beat GSU Friday and Saturday.
GSU head baseball coach James Cooper was looking for a win, not history with a three-game sweep.
"We got off to a good start offensively today," he said after the game. "We didn't hit as many home runs as they hit, but we were able to put balls out the ball park. ... We didn't have any errors in this ball game so that's a good note. The way we swung the ball through all three games is a good note. We just didn't get all the hits we needed and didn't make timely pitches we needed."
Pittsburg owned the seventh inning, rallying to take control. Charles Leblanc started the rally, with a line drive double, two runs scored. Nick Yarnell stepped to the plate and hammered the baseball 370 feet outside the ballpark. Yarnell hit two homers in the seventh inning and hit five homers on the series.
Tigers third baseman Daniel Barnett made an amazing diving catch to slow the Panthers' bats down. Creighton Hoover took a crack, and the bases were loaded. Alex Kowalczyk batted in two runs. The Panthers scoring concluded with three consecutive home runs from Leblanc, Yarnell and Aaron Schnurbusch. GSU never got any offense going after the Panthers rally.
"We played clean up until the seventh inning," added Cooper. "Then we just had a stretch where we couldn't execute pitches. We left balls up they put good swings on them, they hit them out.
"They had a stretch were they had seven or eight hits in a row, there's no defense for that. Whenever you leave pitches belt-high over the middle of the plate, Division 1 ball players or going to get hits on them."
The GSU Tigers open Southwestern Athletic Conference play against Alcorn State University Wednesday (March 2) at 6 p.m. in Lorman, Mississippi.
