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It’s tournament time in Clearwater. UConn Baseball was originally scheduled to play their first game on Wednesday afternoon, but the Huskies’ contest with No. 6 Cincinnati was moved to Tuesday afternoon due to the threat of inclement weather.
UConn is 2-1 this year against the Bearcats and they will send PJ Poulin to the mound looking to improve that record to 3-1 and earn themselves Wednesday off with a matchup against Houston looming at 3 p.m. on Thursday. Should they lose the contest, they will play Wednesday at 9 a.m. in an elimination game against Memphis.
Live Updates:
UConn's tournament-opening lineup. PJ Poulin will take the mound against Cincinnati 35 minutes after the ending of Houston/Memphis pic.twitter.com/zCGBcM88x9
— Shawn McGrath (@ShawnMMcGrath) May 23, 2017
Top 1: RJ Thompson is in the box, PJ Poulin has completed his warmup pitches and the game is on between UConn and Cincinnati!
Mid 1: PJ Poulin does his job and did not allow the Bearcats to get solid contact. The Huskies will now head to the plate and look to take some momentum.
End 1: Anthony Prato doubles with one down and the Huskies got runners on the corners with one out for Isaac Feldstein, but he grounds into a double play to end the threat. 0-0 tie after one full inning.
Top 2: Cincinnati gets a 1-0 lead after three straight singles. AJ Bumpass stands on second with one out after Keith Krueger throws out Eric Santiago trying to go from first to third.
Mid 2: The Bearcats get runners on second and third with one out, but a strikeout and a fly out get Poulin and the Huskies out of a jam. Willy Yahn, Alex LeFevre and Tyler Gnesda are due up trailing 1-0.
End 2: UConn goes down quietly and Poulin is back to the mound. 1-0 Cincinnati.
Mid 3: Poulin strands another pair of Bearcats via a two-out strikeout. 1-0 Cincinnati with Aaron Hill, Keith Krueger and John Toppa slated to hit.
Bot 3: UConn has something here. Hill on second after a single and a Krueger sacrifice bunt and John Toppa comes to the plate for the second time (0-for-1).
Bot 3: Toppa doubles into the right-center gap and he ties the game. Anthony Prato to the plate.
End 3: UConn gets two runs there, one RBI each from Toppa and Prato. 2-1 Huskies one third of the way through.
Mid 4: Cincinnati gets two on base again, but Zac Susi ends the inning by throwing out AJ Bumpass trying to take third. 2-1 UConn and Isaac Feldstein, Willy Yahn and Alex LeFevre are due up.
Bot 4: Alex LeFevre continues his recent run with an RBI double over RJ Thompson’s head in center. Willy Yahn scores and it’s 3-1 Huskies.
End 4: UConn gets another one in and leaves runners on the corners. The Huskies own a 3-1 lead after four innings. PJ Poulin’s day is done and Dan Rajkowski is on to pitch.
Top 5: Cincinnati gets two back quickly. Connor McVey doubles home RJ Thompson and advances to third on a throwing error home before coming home on a sacrifice fly. 3-3.
Mid 5: Cincinnati ties it up. Toppa, Prato and Susi come to the plate looking to retake the lead for the Huskies.
Bot 5: Isaac Feldstein with an RBI double into the right-center gap and UConn retakes the lead.
End 5: The Huskies now own the lead at 4-3 thanks to Isaac Feldstein’s double.
B5 | Feldstein gives @UConnBaseball a 4-3 with a RBI double to right center.
— American Baseball (@American_BSB) May 23, 2017
Watch: https://t.co/lYmlzaX0jH pic.twitter.com/YJXZshiSh0
Mid 6: Nepiarsky sets Cincinnati down in order and required only 11 pitches. He probably comes out for the seventh. In the bottom of the sixth, however, it will be LeFevre, Gnesda and Hill looking to extend the UConn lead, currently sitting at 4-3.
End 6: The Huskies go down in order but they are nine defensive outs away from a win and Wednesday off. They lead Cincinnati 4-3.
Mid 7: Sam Nepiarsky has thrown two perfect relief innings. Krueger, Toppa and Prato are due up for UConn, who own a 4-3 lead.
Bot 7: Grand slam Willy Yahn! He takes a first pitch over the left field fence and he breaks it wide open. 8-3 ballgame.
End 7: Nepiarsky will stay on for awhile as UConn now has some breathing room in an 8-3 game.
Mid 8: Nepiarsky has now set down the first nine he faced and UConn just needs one more inning before they get Wednesday off and move on to face No. 2 Houston. They hold an 8-3 lead.
End 8: Nepiarsky back out. UConn scores four insurance runs on one hit and they own a 12-3 advantage.
Final: UConn gets the 12-3 win over Cincinnati. Tim Cate will pitch on Thursday against Houston with first pitch coming at 3 p.m.