March 18, 2007

Release contributed by Mount Olive sports information

Boxscore

MOUNT OLIVE, N.C.—Erik Lovett went 3-for-3 with a three-run double and Dustin Richardson homered for the second consecutive game as nationally 26th-ranked Mount Olive completed a three-game Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference baseball series sweep with a 12-1 victory over St. Andrews Sunday at Scarborough Field.

Mount Olive , which has won each of its first four CVAC series, extended its current winning streak to seven. The Trojans have scored 83 runs over their last five games.

Mount Olive (25-8 overall, 10-2 CVAC) used five consecutive hits to take a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Stephen Nordan started the hit parade as Scott Houin, Richardson and Josh Carter connected on rbi-singles.

That would be all the runs Trojan starter Darrell Ellis (3-1) would need as he limited the Knights to one run on two hits in five innings pitched. Ellis was aided by three double plays.

St. Andrews (12-19, 3-9) threatened in the top of the first, but Nordan caught a line drive at third base for an inning-ending double play. The Knights got on the scoreboard in the top of the second as Charles Weber was hit by a pitch, advanced to second on Sam Williams’ single and scored on a single by Eric Stone.

Richardson extended Mount Olive’s lead to 4-1 with a solo home run with one out in the bottom of the third. The home run was Richardson’s ninth of the season.

Two St. Andrews errors led to four unearned runs in the bottom of the fourth as the Trojans broke the game open. Graham Wooten hit a leadoff single, advanced to third on a stolen base and throwing error, and scored on David Cooper’s one-out sacrifice fly to the warning track in right field. Mount Olive loaded the bases on singles by Nordan and Houin and a walk to Richardson.

Relief pitcher Daniel Rabon – the third of five St. Andrews pitchers – appeared to get out of the inning on a foul pop-up by Lovett, but the ball was dropped, giving Lovett new life. Lovett lined the next pitch down the right field line and cleared the bases to give Mount Olive an 8-1 lead.

Nordan, who matched Lovett with three hits, singled in two runs in a four-run seventh inning for the Trojans.

Mount Olive brought in four relief pitchers as Ted Pelech recorded a pair of three-pitch strikeouts and retired the side in order in the sixth on eight pitches. Anthony Hernandez allowed a hit in the seventh, but also got out of the inning on eight pitches. Paul Buhrow got out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth on an infield pop-up and Patrick Ball struck out the side after allowing a leadoff single in the ninth.

The five Mount Olive pitchers combined on a five-hitter. Trojan pitching has held opponents to one run or less in five of the last six games.

Knights’ starter Ryan Kirkman (2-4) took the loss.

St. Andrews plays host to Catawba Tuesday at 2 p.m. in non-conference action.