The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
at Samford
Blazers Top Samford, 16-4
5/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 18, 2004
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB exploded for nine runs in the top of the sixth inning en route to a 16-4 victory over Samford in baseball action Tuesday evening at Griffin Field on the Bulldog campus.
UAB (26-26, 11-15 Conference USA) began the inning down 4-2. First baseman Daniel Hill started the Blazer rally with a two-run homer to right field. Left fielder Jeremy Moran later collected his third RBI of the game with a two-RBI double to right field that brought in designated hitter Nathan McCorkle and right fielder Cole Helms. Second baseman Seth Rollin followed with a double to right center field, scoring Moran. Eugene Rodriguez, who was pinch hitting for catcher Ben McCullars, later singled to right center field, bringing in Rollin. Shortstop Josh Miljavac then singled up the middle, scoring third baseman Zac Ward. Hill later got his third RBI of the inning on a sacrifice fly to right field that brought in Rodriguez. McCorkle followed with a single to right field, scoring Miljavac. UAB led 11-4.
The Blazers added three runs in the top of the seventh. Miljavac got his second RBI of the contest when he singled up the middle, allowing Ward to score UAB's first run of the inning. Rodriguez was also able to score on the play when Bulldog right fielder Matt Alling over threw third base in an attempt to put out Rodriguez. Miljavac also advanced to third on the play. Center fielder Levi Patmon then scored Miljavac with a sacrifice fly to right field. UAB led 14-4.
UAB's final two runs came in the top of the eighth inning on Rollin's two-run homer to left center field.
Blazer starter Griffin Zarbough (3-2) picked up the win for UAB after working seven innings and allowing four runs, only two of which were earned, on seven hits. He walked five and struck out five.
"It was good to see us swing the bats the way we did," said UAB head coach Larry Giangrosso. "I thought Griffin Zarbough threw real well. He bared down and got out of some jams early and got us deep in the game. I thought we hit the ball well. I thought we consistently hit it throughout the lineup."
Bulldog starter Lee Brady (2-3) took the loss for Samford (21-30, 13-11 Ohio Valley Conference) after pitching five innings and giving up five runs on six hits. He walked three and struck out three.
UAB took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Moran singled to center field, allowing Helms to score the Blazers' first run of the inning. Ward later grounded into a double, allowing Moran to score from third base.
Samford tied the score in the bottom of the third inning when third baseman Trey Moody singled to right center field, scoring shortstop Joe Denson and Alling.
The Bulldogs took a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. With left fielder Justin Worthington on third base and second baseman Michael Collins on second, Alling grounded out to first base. UAB appeared to have Collins caught in a rundown on the play as Hill threw over to Miljavac. Worthington broke for home on Hill's throw and scored and Collins was then able to score when Miljavac over threw catcher Ben McCullars on a put-out attempt of Worthington.
Hill finished the evening going 3-for-4 with three RBI, Rollin was 3-for-5 with three RBI, Moran went 2-for-4 with three RBI and Miljavac was 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI to lead the Blazers.
UAB has now won seven of its last nine road games.
The win gave UAB a season split with the Bulldogs as Samford won the earlier meeting at Young Memorial Field March 9. The victory also snapped a three-game losing streak for the Blazers on the Samford campus.
UAB next travels to Cincinnati to face the Bearcats in the final Conference USA series of the season Thursday-Saturday. Thursday and Friday, the teams square off at 7:30 p.m. (ET) and Sunday's first pitched is scheduled for 1 p.m. (ET).
All three games of the UAB-Cincinnati series will be broadcast live via the world wide web on the Blazers' official athletics website, www.uabsports.com. For those who are not Yahoo! subscribers, a monthly subscription can be purchased for $4.95 per month and a season-long subscription may be purchased for $14.95. To listen to the broadcast, click on either "UAB Audio Broadcasts" or "Multimedia" from the UAB athletics website's main page and follow the links.
