Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
Navy
Army & Navy Split Doubleheader; Deciding Game Tuesday
May 23, 2011 | Baseball
Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Joey Henshaw homered twice and Chris Rowley pitched seven solid innings as Army defeated Navy, 6-3, to help the Black Knights split the teams' doubleheader on Monday afternoon at Max Bishop Stadium and force a third and deciding game in the Patriot League Championship Series.
Navy carried a 4-0 into the ninth inning of the opener, but had to hang on for a 4-3 victory after Army rallied with three runs in its final turn at bat.
Top-seeded Navy sees its record move to 32-23-1 following today's split, while second-seeded Army goes to 22-25 on the season. The final game of the PLCS will be played on Tuesday (May 24) at 1 p.m.
Army outhit Navy 12-7 in the nightcap as five different Black Knights posted multiple-hit games. Henshaw led the way, going 2-for-4 with two home runs, four RBI and two runs scored. Clint Moore, J.T. Watkins, Cody Murtle and Brent Peterson each recorded two hits apiece to help pace the offensive attack for Army. Seven of the nine Black Knight starters registered at least one base hit in the contest.
Rowley allowed just three runs on six hits in seven innings to improve to 5-4 on the season. The sophomore righty struck out three and only issued one walk during his outing. Army played spectacular defense behind Rowley throughout the game.
"I thought we played more aggressively in the second game, both offensively and defensively," said Army head coach Joe Sottolano. "We set the tone early and I think it carried through the rest of the ballgame. Clint made some outstanding plays in the field and came up with a couple of key hits for us, and Joey swung the bat very well all day long.
"Obviously, I'm pleased with the end result," added Sottolano. "We had our backs against the wall and we came out and put together a good performance in all three phases of the game. We know we control our own destiny tomorrow, and we look forward to meeting the challenge head-on."
Army jumped on top, 2-0, in the first inning of the nightcap as the Black Knights pushed across two runs on two hits and a pair of walks. Zach Price drew a walk to lead off the frame, but he was erased on Ben Koenigsfeld's fielder's choice. Koenigsfeld then stole second and scored on Moore's RBI single up the middle. With two outs, Moore stole second and he scored on Watkins' base hit.
Navy tied the score in the top of the second inning on Andrew Hahn's two-run home run to right-center field. The first two Mids were retired in the frame, but Nick Driscoll singled with two outs and Hahn followed with his third home run of the season.
Army reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the third inning on Henshaw's three-run home run. Koenigsfeld and Moore hit back-to-back one-out singles in front of Henshaw, who blasted a towering three-run shot over the fence in center field. The homer, Henshaw's first since April 25, gave Army a lead that it would not relinquish.
Navy got one run back in the top of the fourth inning as Greg Dupell doubled down the right field line and scored on Hahn's RBI single to right.
Army extended its lead to 6-3 in the seventh inning as Henshaw blasted his second home run of the contest over the fence in right-center field.
Gunnar Carroll came on in relief of Rowley to start the eighth inning and worked around a two-out single to record a hold. Koenigsfeld then struck out the side in the ninth inning to earn his eighth save of the season.
Hahn paced Navy's offense in the nightcap as the team's starting right fielder went 3-for-4 with three RBI and one run scored. He finished the game needing just a triple to complete the cycle. Dupell had a pair of hits, including a double, for the Midshipmen.
Sam Long (5-5) was saddled with the loss after allowing six runs on 11 hits in 6.2 innings. He struck out four and walked two in the contest.
"We came out a little bit flat in the first game and played a little bit too defensively," said Moore, one of Army's two co-captains. "We were able to flip the switch in the second game and we definitely played more aggressively.
"Chris came out pumping strikes and kept the ball down in the zone, which yielded a lot of groundballs," added Moore. "We were able to make plays behind him, but you have to credit Chris for keeping the ball down and giving us the opportunity to make plays."
Navy starter Ben Nelson was in control for most of the first game, yielding just two base hits over the first eight innings of the opening contest before running into trouble in the top of the ninth.
Nelson struck out the side in the top of the first inning, and the Midshipmen took a 2-0 lead in the bottom half of the opening frame with a pair of bases loaded walks. Azor hit a one-out single to center field and Dave Milanes doubled down the right field line to put runners on second and third for Navy. After Jeff Bland grounded out to third, Dupell walked to load the bases. Driscoll and Hahn then drew consecutive walks to force in a pair of runs. Army starter Logan Lee struck out Kash Manzelli to end the threat and leave the bases loaded.
Navy made it 3-0 in the bottom of the second inning as Brandon Beans hit a one-out triple to deep left-center field and scored on Azor's RBI groundout to second.
Nelson was perfect through the first three innings, but Price walked leading off the fourth to provide Army its first base runner of the contest. Henshaw hit a two-out single later in the inning to put runners on the corners, but the Black Knights were unable to push across a run.
Nelson faced just one over the minimum over the next four innings as he cruised into the ninth inning with a 4-0 lead after Navy tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh.
Army nearly came all the way back in the ninth inning as the Black Knights scored three runs on two hits, two walks and one Navy error. Price led off the frame with a single down the left field line and Moore drew a one-out walk to put two men aboard for Henshaw, who ripped an RBI double into the gap in right-center field. Steve May then hit a routine groundball to first base, but Manzelli's flip to the pitcher covering the base sailed wide of the mark and allowed both Moore and Henshaw to score. May took second on the play and he moved to third base when Navy reliever Preston Gainey uncorked a wild pitch. Gainey struck out Watkins for the second out, but issued a walk to pinch-hitter Sean McIlroy. Gainey was able to leave the tying run at third base, though, as he got Peterson to pop out to the second baseman for the final out.
Nelson (6-5) picked up the win, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits in 8.1 innings of work. He struck out seven and only allowed two walks. Gainey was credited with his fourth save of the season as he recorded the final two outs of the game.
Lee (4-9) was tagged with the loss after yielding four runs on six hits in seven innings. He struck out five, but finished with seven walks. John Buckley pitched a scoreless eighth inning out of the Black Knights' bullpen.
Henshaw collected two of Army's four base hits in the contest. Driscoll went 2-for-3 with two RBI to pace Navy at the plate in the first game.
Game Notes: Army's all-time record versus Navy moves to 97-105 ... Army is now 4-3 all-time versus Navy in the Patriot League Tournament ... Army and Navy have split the six games they have played this season, with all six games decided by three runs or less ... with two hits in the nightcap, Clint Moore moves into a tie for second place on Army's all-time hits list (232) ... Joey Henshaw's two home runs in the nightcap move him into a tie for third on the Black Knights' all-time home runs list (23) ... with five RBI today, Henshaw is now tied with teammate Kevin McKague for fourth place on Army's all-time RBI list (138) ... it marked the first multi-home run game of Henshaw's career ... Henshaw matched his season high with four RBI in the nightcap ... Ben Koenigsfeld moved into a tie for third place on Army's single-season saves list (eight) ... Koenigsfeld moved into sole possession of fourth place on Army's career saves list (10) ... Koenigsfeld's 180 strikeouts rank ninth all-time ... Koenigsfeld lowered his team-best ERA to 1.53 after another scoreless inning of relief ... Koenigsfeld is riding a scoreless inning streak of 8.2 innings, dating back to Army's series versus Lehigh (April 17-18) ... Logan Lee walked a career-high seven batters in the opener ... Army wore its traditional gray uniforms with black caps for both game of today's doubleheader.
