February 11, 2001
FURMAN EDGES KENTUCKY 4-3 IN SUSPENDED GAME;
PALADINS WIN SCHEDULED SUNDAY CONTEST 9-2
GREENVILLE -- Chris Valdes singled home Clint Hill with two outs in the bottom
of the 11th inning to give Furman a 4-3 win over Kentucky Sunday afternoon in
a game suspended after 10 innings Friday due to darkness.
In Sunday's regularly scheduled game between the Paladins and Wildcats, Toby
David surrendered only four hits in seven strong innings of work and Dominic
Frankey went 2-for-5 with three RBI to lead Furman to a 9-2 win.
The victories are the first by Furman over a Southeastern Conference school
since the Paladins beat Georgia in 1979. Furman's 5-1 start is the program's
best since 1984. Kentucky, which beat Wofford 15-11 on Saturday in Spartanburg,
drops to 1-2 on the season.
In Friday's suspended game, Kentucky took a 3-2 lead in the ninth inning on a two-out, two-run single to left field by Jeff Tolotti off Furman reliever Danny Rueckel (1-0).
Furman tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth when Derek Norman's single to left off Wildcat reliever Jon Hooker (0-1) plated Adam Etherington.
Later in bottom of the 11th, Hill reached on error with one out and then, following a fielder's choice, scored from second on a single to center by Valdes off Hooker.
In Sunday's second game, Furman's Danny Rueckel's RBI single and Adam Etherington's RBI triple keyed a four-run Paladin fourth to stake the Paladins to a 6-1 lead. Dominic Frankey later added an RBI single in the sixth and bases loaded walk in the seventh to highlight an 11-hit Paladin attack.
Toby David (1-0) struck out three in his seven innings of work en route to the win. Mark Michael (0-1) took the loss for Kentucky after giving up four five hits, four walks, and four runs in 4 and 1/3 innings of work. Wildcat pitchers issued 11 walks in the game, including three to Paladin leadoff man Hill.
Furman returns to action on Tuesday when it takes on Georgia State in Atlanta in a 4:00 p.m. game.