Army Takes Critical 1-0 Lead in Championship Series

Sunday, May 20

Annapolis, MD

1 p.m.

Army West Point

34-22

Navy (Championship)

38-15

ARMY

NAVY

Army Takes Critical 1-0 Lead in Championship Series

May 20, 2018 | Baseball

Box Score

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Army West Point baseball team defeated rival Navy here Sunday afternoon, 8-5, in the Patriot League Championship Series Opener.

The victory handed the Black Knights an important one game lead in the best-of-three series. The two teams will play the second game of the series on Monday with an additional game three being played immediately following that if needed. First pitch for Monday is slated for noon at Navy's Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.

The Cadets never trailed in the game but Navy didn't go down without a fight. The Black Knights had built an 8-2 advantage heading into the bottom of the ninth. Unfortunately, they saw their host notch three big runs and had the game-tying run up at the plate with two outs but sophomore Logan Smith forced the Mids to fly out to end the rally and secure Army the victory.

It was a 0-0 ballgame until the Cadets broke the deadlock in the third with two runs on two hits. Jon Rosoff earned a one-out walk before Josh White and Anthony Giachin tallied back-to-back singles to bring home the game's first run. Trey Martin then converted on a sacrifice bunt to score Army's second run of the frame.

The Mids pulled even with a two-out, two-run home run over the right field fence in the fifth off of starting pitcher Tyler Giovinco.

The junior rebounded though to sit the next seven-of-eight batters down in order to end his night allowing just seven hits and two runs in seven innings of work. The Las Vegas, Nev., native fanned four while on the hill as well.

Army wasted little time being tied as Giachin broke the 2-2 score with a leadoff long ball in the top of the sixth inning. That hit handed the rookie his second career home run and gave the Black Knights a 3-2 edge.

A leadoff single by Josh White in the eighth then forced the Mids to make a pitching change. Fortunately, the Cadets tacked on two more runs during the frame thanks to three hits to create a 5-2 gap between the teams.

Army then recorded three additional runs in the top half of the ninth and they proved key for the designated visiting team. Anfernee Crompton, Rosoff and White all touched home during the inning. A highlight during the frame was White's team-leading fifth triple of the year, which brought two runners across home plate.

Despite the Mids pulling within 8-5 with two outs in the bottom half of the ninth, the Black Knights were able to hold on to register their 34th win of the season.

Giachin and White both had themselves a day, posting three hits each. Drake Titus chipped in two hits as well, while Giachin brought home a game-high three runs batted in.

Giovinco earned his eighth win of the year and Smith posted his first save. Noah Song was credited with the loss for Navy.

ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES

Both teams compiled four extra base hits on the day.
Martin and Titus both added to their doubles total with their 13th and 10th of the year, respectively.
Jacob Hurtubise and Martin both converted on a sacrifice hit during the game, while Giachin was credited with a sacrifice fly ball.
The four-man Army pitching staff earned five strikeouts throughout the contest, including four from starter Giovinco.
Cam Opp came in for relief of Giovinco and pitched 1.2 innings. The junior allowed one hit and three unearned runs during his time on the mound.
Jacob Carte and Smith were the other two Black Knight pitchers to see action in the game.
Navy's Song pitched 7.0 innings, giving up seven hits and four runs. The junior did manage to strike out eight while on the hill, increasing his conference-leading number to 121.
The Mids also used Colin Brady and Trey Seabrooke during the game for one inning each of relief work.
Army earned the only double play of the contest and it came in the bottom of the second.
Rosoff had his six-game hitting streak snapped in the contest, but earned a game-high three walks.
Martin extended his hitting streak to seven-straight games after finishing 1-for-4 with two RBI and one run.
Rosoff threw out his conference-leading 17th baserunner of the season during the opening frame.

FACTS & FIGURES

Army finished with eight runs on 11 hits, while Navy compiled five runs on 10 hits.
The Black Knights were credited with the only two errors in the game and they came during the ninth inning.
The Cadets left six runners on base. The Mids stranded eight.

UP NEXT

Army and Navy will close out their best-of-three series on Monday.
The Black Knights need one more win to advance to the NCAA tournament, while the Mids need a win in Game Two to force a decisive final game.
The second game of the series will kick off at 12 p.m. on Monday followed by game three 30 minutes after that, if necessary.
All contests will be played at Navy's Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium and be carried live on the Patriot League Network.