Dukes Sweep Twinbill Over St. Bonaventure 7-5 and 4-1

Friday, March 18

Harrisonburg, Va.

2 p.m.

James Madison University

8-10

St. Bonaventure

9-3

St. Bonaventure

James Madison

3/18/2016 8:26:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Sophomore Colton Harlow's three-hitter capped a baseball doubleheader sweep with a complete-game effort in a 4-1 win after James Madison rallied with a seven-run seventh to win the opener 7-5 against St. Bonaventure on Friday afternoon at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park.

JMU snapped a four-game skid to improve to 9-10 while the two losses dropped SBU to 9-2 and snapped a six-game winning streak. It was the first-ever meeting between the programs in baseball.

Game 1 – James Madison 7, St. Bonaventure 5

Trailing 5-0 in the bottom of the seventh, JMU took advantage of free bases to strike for seven runs on just two hits en route to the 7-5 victory in a full nine-inning game.

The Dukes loaded the bases with a hit batter, walk and then another walk after two outs. The Bonnies went to the pen for the first time and the new pitcher tossed eight consecutive pitches out of the zone to walk in a pair of runs. After another pitching change, a hit batter made it 5-3. Sophomore second baseman Kyle McPherson then beat out an infield single and an errant throw allowed the tying run to score. Redshirt senior Kyle Weston came up with the game winner with a bouncer pulled inside the third-base bag for a two-run double.

Weston finished the game 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a steal. Junior catcher Zach Tondi also had a pair of hits with a double. Redshirt senior third baseman Chad Carroll had a hit, run, RBI and two walks in the leadoff spot.

Freshman Christian Leckert earned his first collegiate victory after escaping the seventh by stranding a runner on third prior to JMU's rally. Redshirt senior Ben Garner got the final two outs for his third save. Redshirt senior starter Aaron Hoover allowed five runs with seven strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings.

Third baseman Thad Johnson was 3-for-4 as the Bonnies led the Dukes in hits 12-8. Tyler Walter, Tommy LaCongo and Ted Dilts each added two hits with LaCongo contributing a home run and Walter hitting an RBI triple. T.J. Baker (4-1) allowed the final two runs to take the loss on the mound.

Game 2 – James Madison 4, St. Bonaventure 1

Colton Harlow allowed just one run with career highs of seven innings and seven strikeouts in a complete-game victory in the second contest. He allowed just three hits and fired 101 pitched while picking up his first collegiate victory in his 25^th career outing.

Carroll went 3-for-3 with a double, a run and an RBI as part of JMU's eight-hit effort. Junior first baseman Brett Johnson had a pair of hits and McPherson knocked in a pair of runs with a double.

Brandon Schlimm went the distance for the Bonnies, taking the loss after allowing four runs in six innings. Third baseman Thad Johnson was 2-for-3 with a RBI to account for two of his team's three hits.

With the score knotted 1-1, JMU struck for three runs in the bottom of the third. Center fielder Mike Sciorra and Carroll led off with back-to-back doubles to take a 2-1 lead. Left fielder Ky Parrott added a RBI single and McPherson lifted a sacrifice fly to account for the 4-1 decision.

Tweet of the Game

Let's play two! It's a perfect day for baseball; come join us at VMP at 2pm as JMU faces St. Bonaventure! pic.twitter.com/8s9J0jKJQf
— JMU Baseball (@JMUBaseball) March 18, 2016

Quoting Coach Ikenberry
I was really proud of the way we came back in game one and put up a seven-spot there. Tip your cap to their guy, he pitched a great game. He gave us a couple of free bases and we got a big hit by Weston to take the lead. I thought our bullpen did a terrific job with [Michael] Evans and Ben Garner getting the save. Then Colton Harlow came in and threw a complete game on 101 pitches and had control of everything. Chad Carroll had a great day and had a big hit for us with a double in the third. I was proud of our offense.

Nation's Leader Stays Hot
Carroll entered the day tied for the national lead with 33 and added four more on the day with one in the opener and three in the night cap. He also started the day ranked 22^nd nationally in batting average and raised that mark from .446 to .463.

Photo of the Game
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On Deck
Weather permitting, JMU and St. Bonaventure are scheduled to finish the three-game series on Saturday afternoon at noon.