March 4, 2000
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky baseball team pushed across seven runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to post its 12th consecutive win to start the season, winning 9-3 over the Dayton Flyers at Cliff Hagan Stadium on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Wildcats (12-0) have extended the school record for most consecutive wins to start a season and can equal the best overall UK win streak of 13 games with a win tomorrow in the series finale with Dayton (3-3).
In the game, Andy Green became the all-time UK leader for consecutive games played with 181 as he passed Chuck Long. The Lexington native has appeared in every game during his four years as a Wildcat. The win also brings head coach Keith Madison closer to a career milestone of his own as a win tomorrow would give the 22-year coach 650 in his distinguished career.
With the stingy starting pitching and potent offensive attack that the Cats have been displaying this year, the team found itself in unfamiliar territory on Saturday, trailing Dayton after seven innings, 3-2. Dayton starter, left-hander Kasey Rosendahl, baffled the Cats through seven, allowing just two runs on four hits while inducing UK into 10 ground-ball outs. But Rosendahl’s luck ran out in the eighth as the Cats scratched and clawed their way back for their second late-inning comeback of the season.
Jeff Meade led off the eighth by getting hit by a pitch. After Green reached on a bunt single and Meade’s hustle turned a Vince Harrison sacrifice bunt attempt into a fielder’s choice by narrowly beating the throw to third base. In the ensuing argument, and after a meeting between the umpiring crew, UD head coach Tony Vittorio was ejected from the game. Rosendahl (0-1) then walked Aaron McGlone to tie the game before being relieved by right-hander Brian Lyons. Lyons’ first pitch skipped straight to the backstop to plate Green with the go-ahead run. Both Seth Morris, with a two-run single through the hole in short, and Meade, a bases-loaded double to the left-centerfield wall that scored all three runners, added insurance runs with clutch hits.
Kentucky received another quality start from freshman Scott Wade, but the right-hander still left the game trailing after an error by Morris in leftfield and a double led to UD’s go-ahead run in the top of the seventh. Despite being tagged for eight hits, Wade allowed just two earned runs and one walk before being removed in the seventh with a man on second and no one out.
Making his earliest relief appearance this season, Breck Price got out of the jam with a strikeout and two groundouts. Price (1-0) earned the win by going the rest of the way allowing just one walk and erasing that man in a game-ending double play. With 23 total batters faced this season, Price is yet to surrender a hit and has walked just two while striking out 11 in 7-1/3 innings of work. He has faced just one batter over the minimum this year.
The Cats will be going for the sweep of Dayton in tomorrow afternoon’s game. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. ET. Slated to pitch for the Flyers in their ace, senior right-hander Jason McFarland (0-1). Kentucky’s starter is yet to be announced.
Tomorrow’s game will be the broadcast debut for the Cats on the world wide web as the game will be broadcast, audio-only, on the University of Kentucky’s official home on the web, www.ukathletics.com. Calling the game will be former UK pitchers Patrick Mahan and Justin Sanders. The broadcast begins at 1:50 p.m. with the pre-game show live >from Hagan Stadium. UK is tentatively set to broadcast every game for the remainder of the season, both home and away. The broadcast can be accessed through the “Schedule/Results” page on the UK baseball main page.
