Akron baseball blanks Penguins

Staff report

AKRON

Akron starting pitcher Joe Cochran struck out 10 batters in seven innings, and the Youngstown State baseball team was held to three hits in a 5-0 loss to the Zips at Canal Park on Tuesday evening.

Matt Sullivan represented three of the four baserunners Cochran allowed. Sullivan led off the second with a single, and he reached on an error to start the seventh. Jake Fryman drew a two-out walk in the fifth. Joe King and Kurt Laver had singles in the eighth inning off Jon Pusateri for YSU’s other two hits.

Penguins starter Jeremy Quinlan allowed two runs on four hits and two walks in four innings, and Akron scored three runs in the sixth off Austin Lujano to give Cochran a five-run cushion.

The Zips scored on a sacrifice fly in the first and a groundout in the second to go up 2-0. They then scored three runs on four hits and two walks in the sixth to go ahead 5-0. Billy Salem and James Meeker had RBI singles in the inning, and Daulton Mosbarger drew a bases-loaded walk.

YSU’s best chance offensively came in the top of the eighth off Pusateri. King led off with a single, and Laver singled two batters later to put runners at the corners. Alex Larivee was hit by a pitch to load the bases, but the reliever got Phil Lipari and Nick DiNello to fly out to end the inning with the shutout preserved.

Youngstown State will play at Canisius today at 3 p.m.