| From the Lansing State Journal |
By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
Saturday, Mar. 17 Spartans v. Cincinnati Game 2 of 3
Last week the Spartans endured a 16-inning marathon of a game, started by Andrew Waszak, who went seven of those innings, and beat Seton Hall. On Saturday, Waszak was once again on the mound and the Spartans game against the Cincinnati Bearcats extended all the way to the 14th inning where John Martinez drove in the winning run to give the Spartans the 5-4 victory.
After being swept in College Station, Tex. in Feb. the Spartans have won five of their last six games and with their latest extra-innings win improve to 3-0 in extra inning games on the season.
Waszak again went seven innings on Saturday, giving up two runs on five hits while fanning four Bearcats. It was another quality start for the Spartans No. 2 pitcher who now boasts a 1.34 ERA on the season.
Michigan State was leading 4-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth and with their shutdown closer Tony Wieber toeing the rubber the Spartans thought they were in the clear. Wieber however struggled in his outing and the Bearcats were able to scratch two runs across off the pitcher who hadn't allowed a run in his last seven appearances.
With the game tied at four the Spartans called on Bryce Jenney out of the bullpen to keep the Bearcats from rallying in extras - he did just that. Jenney tossed three scoreless and handed the ball to the eventual winning pitcher Ryan Martin, his first career win.
The Bearcats threatened but did not score off Martin in the 13th. Martin allowed a single which due to an error and a flyout placed a runner on third with two outs, but Martin was able to get the next batter to pop out.
Torsten Boss reached base in the 14th when the Cincinnati shortstop bobbled the ball and allowed him to reach first on an error on a fielder's choice. With one out Jordan Keur bunted Boss over to second where he was able to score off a Martinez single up the middle.
Sunday, Mar. 18 Spartans v. Cincinnati Game 3 of 3
The Spartans came out swinging on Sunday, compiling 16 hits off Cincinnati pitching while scoring nine runs in a 9-4 victory.With the win the Spartans have won the last six of seven and completed a sweep of the Bearcats.
Mike Theodore made his third start of the season for the Spartans but was still looking for his first win despite having allowed just one earned run and boasting a 0.89 ERA. Theodore had not enjoyed much run support in his previous starts, but Sunday was different.
Michigan State was able to plate five runs in the first two innings and give Theodore the support he needed. Theodore allowed two runs off six hits on the day and came home with his first victory as a Spartan.
John Martinez continued his hot streak and drove in another RBI in the seventh to give the Spartans a 7-2 lead before Jordan Keur singled in another in the eighth. With the score at 8-2 Jimmy Pickens drew a bases loaded walk later in the eighth to drive the score to 9-2.
Sunday was the first collegiate appearance for Mick VanVossen, drafted in 2011 by the Texas Rangers, when he relieved Theodore in the sixth inning. In his 2.2 innings of work VanVossen allowed just one run on four hits while fanning and walking two apiece.
The sweep of Cincinnati was the 11th sweep of a series for the Spartans under Coach Jake Boss Jr., which continues to allow Boss to add to the school record in that category.
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