Tognetti, Koman Star in Series-Finale Win Over Spartans

Sunday, April 20

East Lansing, Mich.

1:00 PM

Michigan

19-16, 7-7

Michigan State

11-24, 4-10

Michigan

Michigan State

Tognetti, Koman Star in Series-Finale Win Over Spartans

4/20/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Senior 3B Brock Koman (Pueblo, Colo./South HS) provided the offense with two doubles and a homer and sophomore RHP Phil Tognetti (Newhall, Calif./Hart HS) pitched a seven-hitter for his first career complete game as Michigan beat Michigan State 5-2 in Big Ten baseball action Sunday (April 20) at Kobs Field.

Tognetti did not allow a walk in logging Michigan's third consecutive complete game.

The win for the Wolverines (19-16, 7-7 Big Ten) was the third straight over the Spartans (11-24, 4-10 Big Ten) to give Michigan the edge in the season series three games to one. It marked the first time Michigan has taken the season series from MSU since sweeping all four games in 1999. First-year head coach Rich Maloney's Wolverines have won six of the last seven games in overall play and have moved into a three-way tie for fifth place in the Big Ten with Penn State and Illinois.

Tognetti (4-2) notched his second win of the week and in two starts allowed just one earned run in 14 innings with wins over Hillsdale and Michigan State. His four wins give him a share of the team lead. Tognetti retired the first eight Spartans before allowing a two-out single to freshman shortstop Alan Cattrysse in the third inning. Cattrysse had three of MSU's seven hits.

Tognetti faced the minimum three batters five times and four batters in two innings. He allowed an unearned run in the seventh inning and the second run in the bottom of the ninth on a double by Travis Gulick and a two-out single by 1B Scott Koerber.

Koman had two doubles and a homer for the second time this season, with both coming in Big Ten road games at Iowa and MSU. Koman moved his team-leading doubles total to 16 and pulled his career doubles total to 67 to tie the Wolverine career record set by Mike Cervenak (67 doubles, 1996-99). Koman's two-out solo homer in the eighth inning, which restored the three-run lead, was the 27th homer of his career to snap his tie for eighth on Michigan's all-time homer list with two-time Wolverine All-American shortstop Barry Larkin (26 homers, 1983-85).

The Wolverines scored a pair of runs in the first inning as senior CF Gino Lollio (Cape Coral, Fla./Mariner HS) opened the game with a double to left-center, and after moving to third on a wild pitch he scored on a groundout by sophomore DH Nick Rudden (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS). Rudden, who leads the team with a .408 batting average, was held hitless on Sunday but did get credit for his first game-winning RBI of the season.

Koman doubled to left and scored on a two-out single by fifth-year senior 1B Mike Sokol (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle HS) for a 2-0 lead after one inning. Sokol went 2-for-4 and continues to lead the Wolverines in conference-only action, hitting .478 (22-for-46).

Michigan pushed the lead to 3-0 in the third inning as Lollio singled to left, moved to second with his team-leading seventh stolen base and scored on Koman's second double of the game. The Wolverines added offensive insurance on Koman's solo home run in the eighth inning off MSU's starter and losing pitcher Jeff Gerbe (1-2).

In the ninth the Wolverines added their fifth and final run of the game as senior LF Jordan Cantalamessa (Castle Rock, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) singled and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by pinch hitter Matt Butler (Lombard, Ill./Driscoll Catholic HS). Freshman 2B A.J. Scheidt (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Lahser HS) knocked in the run with a two-out single. Scheidt is hitting .290 with seven runs, seven RBI and seven starts in his young career.

Michigan is off for final exams before hosting Penn State in a four-game weekend series at Ray Fisher Stadium (April 25-27). The Wolverines (7-7) and PSU Nittany Lions (8-8) enter the series opener on Friday (April 25, 3 p.m.) in a three-way tie for fifth place with Illinois (8-8).

N O T E S

In other Big Ten action Sunday, Indiana gained a weekend split at Ohio State with a 6-3 win and Minnesota gained a weekend split by beating Illinois 7-6. Penn State took three of four from Northwestern by winning 11-1 on Sunday. Purdue won two of the three games in the weather-shortened series at Iowa by splitting Sunday's doubleheader. Iowa won the opener 5-4 and Purdue took the nightcap 18-6.

Big Ten Standings (after Sunday's Games)

 1. Minnesota 12-2 .857 2. Ohio State 9-6 .600 3. Indiana 9-7 .563 4. Purdue 8-7 .533 5. MICHIGAN 7-7 .500 Penn State 8-8 .500 Illinois 8-8 .500 8. Northwestern 6-8 .429 9. Michigan State 4-10 .286 10. Iowa 3-12 .200

Michigan has six complete games this season and three came in the final three games of the Michigan State series as sophomore RHP Phil Tognetti pitched his first career complete game on Sunday at MSU after sophomore LHP Drew Taylor (Toronto, Ontario/Upper Canada College) and junior RHP Bobby Garza (Southgate, Mich./Anderson HS) each notched career complete game No. 2 during Saturday's doubleheader sweep in Ann Arbor.

Michigan has won four of its last five Big Ten games, and all four wins have been complete games, with Taylor accounting for two of them.

Junior catcher Jake Fox went 8-for-21 (.381) in five games last week with two singles, two doubles, two triples, two homers and 10 RBI. Fox is hitting .362 and he leads the team with 23 extra-base hits, including 14 doubles, two triples and 10 homers. He leads the team with 43 RBI and a .708 slugging percentage.

Senior 2B/LF Jordan Cantalamessa had seven hits for the weekend vs. MSU.

Michigan's hitting leaders after 35 games include (45 plate appearances minimum): sophomore SS Nick Rudden (.408, 31-for-76), senior 3B Brock Koman (.400, 56-for-140), DH/OF/1B Mike Sokol (.380, 46-for-121), junior C Jake Fox (.362, 47-for-130) and senior OF Gino Lollio (.328, 44-for-134).

Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423