No. 1 Xavier Advances To Championship With 5-3 Win Over No. 2 Creighton
Box Score
ABERDEEN, Md. – No. 1 seed Xavier returns to Championship Sunday for the second time in three years after a 5-3 victory over No. 2 seed Creighton Friday night at the BIG EAST Baseball Championship presented by Jeep at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium. For the second-straight outing, Dan Rizzie was the clutch hitter for the Musketeers, this time with a two-out three-run double in the bottom of the fourth inning.
With the win, the Musketeers (29-28) punched their ticket to Championship Sunday and will play at 12 p.m. ET. With the loss, Creighton (37-16) will play Saturday at 3 p.m. against fourth-seeded St. John’s in the second elimination game of the tournament. St. John’s defeated Seton Hall, 4-1, earlier on Friday.
Xavier has won its last five straight games.
Xavier struck first with a run in the bottom of the first. The Musketeers did their damage with two men down when Joe Gellenbeck reached on an infield single and took second on a throwing error. A passed ball moved Gellenbeck to third and he scored on an RBI single from Nate Soria.
Creighton pulled even in the third on the speed of junior Daniel Woodrow. The center fielder was hit by a pitch to open the inning, stole second with two down and scored on an RBI single from senior Matt Gandy.
Scoring held off until the the bottom of the fourth inning when the Musketeers started with two straight outs before David Morton kicked off a rally with a single up the middle. Matt Fallon followed with a single to shortstop and Rylan Bannon walked to load the bases. Rizzie then doubled to the left field corner, bringing around all three runners and moving to third on the throw to the plate – where Bannon slid in safely. Gellenbeck came up next and shot one up the middle to plate Rizzie and make it 5-1.
Creighton’s Kevin Connolly moved the Bluejays within striking distance in the sixth, smacking a two-run triple to left-center with two down. Gandy got things started with a single to center, then senior Harrison Crawford walked to put runners at first and second. Two outs later, Connolly blasted a 2-1 pitch to left-center to make it a 5-3 contest.
Neither team would score again as Xavier moved on to Championship Sunday.
Gellenbeck finished with a multi-hit performance, going 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI.· Rylan Bannon (1-for-4, R), Dan Rizzie (1-for-4, R, 2B, 3 RBI), Andre Jernigan (1-for-3), Nate Soria (1-for-4, RBI) and David Morton (1-for-4, R) also collected hits for Xavier. Junior Matt Fallon led the way with a 3-for-4 day, tying a season-high with three hits while scoring a run.
Xavier starter Trent Astle (5-4) tossed 5.2 innings, scattering six hits and getting charged with three earned runs. The junior lefty struck out two. Musketeer righty Taylor Williams came on in relief in the sixth, notching the final out with a runner on third and cruising through 2.1 scoreless frames. Garrett Schilling picked up his 12th save, coming on in the ninth to pitch a clean inning with a strikeout.