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Georgetown 7, Northwestern 1 Georgetown 8, Northwestern 6 North Charlotte Regional Park Port Charlotte, Fla. Box Score (Game 1) | Box Score (Game 2) |
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PORT CHARLOTTE, Ill. -- Despite pounding out 23 hits in the two games, Northwestern dropped both ends of a doubleheader against the Georgetown Hoyas Sunday to finish the Snowbird Classic in the Sunshine State. The Hoyas scored seven unanswered runs in the opener to win 7-1 in seven innings before coming from behind twice to win the nightcap, 8-6.
Sophomore Matt Hopfner batted .714 with five hits in seven at-bats in the doubleheader, while first baseman Zach Jones added five hits, including a pair of doubles and a triple in two games against the Hoyas. Each Wildcat drove in two runs, while Jones scored twice and Hopfner stole two bases.
Game 1 Recap:
Northwestern opened the scoring in the second inning of a scheduled seven-inning game Sunday morning. Reid Hunter singled through the left side and then stole second base with Hopfner at the dish. Hopfner laced a base hit up the middle to bring Hunter home and give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead. Hopfner stole second with one out, but back-to-back groundouts to third base ended the threat.
Junior Reed Mason made his fourth start of the season Sunday and the southpaw did not allow a base runner as he cruised through the first two innings. The Hoyas were able to break through for four runs, three of which were unearned, in the bottom of the third inning.
Down by three, the 'Cats threatened in the top of the top of the fourth. Hopfner picked up a one-out single before Connor Lind belted a double to left field to put a pair of runners in scoring position. Neither was able to score, however, and Georgetown maintained a 4-1 lead.
The Hoyas picked up three more runs on five hits in the bottom of the fourth to take a 7-1 lead. Northwestern loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the fifth, but Hopfner flied out to right field to end that threat and Georgetown would hang on to win the opener, 7-1.
Chicago's Big Ten Team registered 11 hits in game one, including three from Jones. Mason fell to 0-3 on the season, while JR Reimer, a two-way player, and Richard Fordon, both made their debuts on the mound Sunday morning.
Game 2 Recap:
Starting pitchers Joe Schindler (NU) and Kevin Superko (GU) both tossed two scoreless frames to start the nine-inning game before Northwestern struck first on the scoreboard with a crooked number in the bottom of the third.
Jones reached on a throwing error with one out and Joe Hoscheit singled to the hole at third base. Jones scored when Hunter reached on another error, this one by the second baseman, and Hoscheit came in on Hopfner's RBI single up the middle. Lind followed suit with a base knock up the middle that plated Hunter for the third tally of the inning.
The Wildcats added to their lead with another run in the bottom of the fourth. Kyle Ruchim walked to open the frame and he took second on a wild pitch. Jones then crushed a double down the left-field line that scored Ruchim, though the batter was thrown out trying to stretch his two-bagger into a triple.
Schindler threw up zeroes in the fourth and fifth innings before the Hoyas rallied for five runs in the top of the sixth to take a 5-4 lead. The big blow came in the form of a three-run home run off the bat of Ryan Busch.
NU's bullpen arms of Pete Hofman and Jake Stolley threw 2.2 scoreless innings in relief of Schindler to set the stage for the offense in the the bottom of the eighth inning. Ruchim started a two-out rally with a single through the left side and Jones drove him all the way home with a triple to left-center field that tied the game at five runs apiece. After Scott Heelan walked, Hoscheit hit a single that sent Jones home with the go-ahead run.
Freshman Tommy Bordignon relieved Stolley to open the top of the ninth. The Hoyas opened the inning by reaching on a fielding error before a walk and a bunt single loaded the bases. Georgetown then took the lead when Jake Kuzbel doubled to left-center field. The visiting team added another insurance run on a sacrifice fly to right field.
Hopfner tried to ignite a ninth-inning rally when he reached via a walk to start the bottom of the ninth. After Lind struck out, Reimer grounded into a 4-6-3 double play that ended the game.
NU collected 12 hits in the night cap, led by Hopfner who had three. Ruchim, Jones, Hoscheit and Cody Stevens all turned in multi-hit efforts as well. Schindler finished with eight strikeouts in 5.1 innings on the mound without issuing a base on balls. Bordignon, who notched his first collegiate save against Dartmouth on Saturday, fell to 0-2 on the season.
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