March 18, 2007

Box Score

Daytona Beach, Fla. - Joseph Gautier went the distance on the mound for Bethune-Cookman University in order to collect his first career shutout with an 8-0 performance over Savannah State University on Sunday afternoon at Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, Fla. B-CU collected the second win of the series to take the three-game stretch, 2-1 over the top-ranked team in this session's Black College Baseball poll.

Good pitching ... good hitting ... and great enthusiasm was the difference in the rubber match of Sunday's heated series with Savannah State University. But the story of the game was, ultimately, the pitching performance of B-CU sophomore Joseph "Gio" Gautier.

Gautier was solid all day long with a variety of off-speed pitches and a sizzling fastball that kept the Savannah State (15-10) bats at bay for most of the game.

Bethune-Cookman (9-16) wasted little time getting going today as centerfielder José Ortiz-Rivera kicked things off with a double in the first inning. First baseman Angel Negron hit into a double play (4x6x3), but that was good enough to bring Ortiz-Rivera in for the go-ahead score at 1-0.

The Wildcats got right back to work in the bottom-half of the third inning as senior Angel Mercado singled and shortstop Chris Henault doubled to get runners into scoring position. Catcher Alejandro Jimenez, subbing behind the plate for the injured Drew Clark, immediately delivered one of his two hits on the game to score Mercado on the play.

That brought up left fielder Neal Jones who then stepped to the plate to knock in Henault from third on an RBI single to straight-away centerfield. B-CU led 3-0 after three innings of baseball action.

"It was so important to get a lead today because we didn't want to let Savannah State get ahead like they did yesterday," explained B-CU head coach Mervyl Melendez. "I was proud of our guys' intensity, and they way they approached the game with a desire to win and be explosive for us today."

B-CU really kicked in the doors on the game in the fourth inning when, with runners on first and second, Chris Henault blasted a three-run homerun to left field for the first long-ball of the series.

For Henault, it was his fourth homerun of the season, and his third in a week after hitting solo shots in back-to-back games against Coastal Carolina and Georgia Southern last weekend.

With the Wildcats out in front 6-0 in the top of the fifth inning, SSU started to press just a bit. That's when the artist on the hill for the `Cats, Joseph Gautier, started to paint the black and continue to create his masterpiece.

Gautier struck out his fourth and fifth batters of the day to keep the scoreboard clean of runs, and continue to push back the SSU offensive attack that had been so deadly the past two days.

"Gio [Gautier] was outstanding today, and that's the player we expected when we recruited him out of high school," admits Coach Melendez. "He kept them [Savannah State] off-balance, and he trusted himself and the pitches he was throwing. If he continues to believe in what Coach [Joel] Sanchez teaches him, then he's going to be a phenomenal player in the future."

The Wildcats hit the board again in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, as they pushed across two more runs for the final 8-0 decision. Both runs were crossed on recorded wild pitches from a pair of relief pitchers out of the SSU bullpen in the form of Marcus Phillips and James Mock.

SSU starter Marcus Cortes was relieved after four innings of work on the hill as B-CU beat him up for six runs (all earned) on 11 hits. Cortes also collected the only strikeout of the game for the Tigers while walking two batters.

Six Wildcats collected a multi-hit game today as Chris Henault three-run homer highlighted his 2-for-4 performance at the plate with three RBI. Also playing well were Alejandro Jimenez (2-for-4) and Neil Jones (2-for-5) with one RBI each on the game.

For the Tigers of SSU, catcher John Keene--also closing out the game on the hill in relief pitching duties, finished as the only Tiger with a multi-hit game with a 2-for-4 approach at the plate. Gautier limited the `Cats to just six (6) hits throughout the contest. It was the sixth time this season the Wildcats have limited an opponent to six hits or fewer in a game.

"If you don't play the game with the potential of winning and look like a champion, then you are going to get beaten ... just as we did yesterday," stated Coach Melendez. "Today, we showed much better discipline at the plate and poise on the mound than we had all series long."

With the win today, B-CU hurler Joseph Gautier picked up his first win of the year to vault his mark to 1-2, while the loss evened the record of SSU's Marcus Cortes at 4-4 for the campaign.

The Wildcats continue their dominance over fellow Black College Baseball opponents with their sixth consecutive series victory. Their last series defeat to an HBCU opponent was back in the last part of the MEAC [Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference] campaign against Delaware State at home in 2005. That was also the last home series setback the `Cats have faced inside Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

The Wildcats will have Monday off before taking on Jacksonville University in a mid-week series Tuesday night back at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. Game time is set for a 6 p.m. start.