May 12, 2000
EAST TENNESSEE BASEBALL DEFEATS FURMAN, 23-4
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. -- East Tennessee State scored in every inning except the second and powered its way to a 23-4 win against Furman at ETSU's Cardinal Park. The Bucs belted four home runs and set a season high for runs in a game.
ETSU starter Matt Baber improved to 10-6 on the season in his last start at Cardinal Park. He hurled 8.1 innings, allowing four runs on nine hits.
The Buc offense was led by Raymond McBride who went 4-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored. He had three doubles on the evening. Chad Boruff went 3-4 with four RBIs and four runs scored.
Furman (22-28-1, 14-12-1 SoCon) opened the game with a run in the first. After two outs, Chris Valdes singled and later scored on a Cole Hubka base hit. ETSU responded with one tally in the bottom of the frame when a McBride double plated Ed Sparks who had singled.
Boruff belted his team-high 10th home run of the season -- a two-run shot -- in the third to give the Bucs a 3-1 lead. Furman's Danny Rueckel answered with a homer to left center that cut the lead to 3-2 in the fourth. A three-run double by Jeremy Terry in the home half increased the Bucs' lead to 6-2.
ETSU (20-28, 14-14 SoCon) jumped out to a 9-2 advantage with three in the bottom of the fifth. McBride and Matt Nunley had run-scoring doubles in the frame. Shannon Carter's sixth-inning grand slam made the score 13-2. Nunley followed with a two-run shot later in the inning.
A two-run homer by McBride in the bottom of the seventh gave ETSU a 17-2 lead. The Paladins scored two in the eighth. Doubles by Clint Hill and Valdes began the rally. Valdes finished the game 3-5 with two runs scored and one RBI.
ETSU batted around in the eighth, scoring six runs. The frame was highlighted by a two-run double from McBride. Six consecutive batters reached, five on hits. Furman starter Toby David (3-5) suffered the loss after allowing nine runs on six hits in 4.1 innings.
The Bucs and Furman will resume their series tomorrow at 3 p.m.