Larivee powers YSU baseball sweep

Penguins win twice

in dramatic fashion

Staff report

NILES

The Youngstown State baseball team won twice in its final at-bats Friday in sweeping a doubleheader from Valparaiso, 6-5 and 9-7, at Eastwood Field.

Alex Larivee had the key hits in both rallies for the Penguins.

Larivee hit a walk-off double in the bottom of the ninth inning of the opener, and hit a two-run double in YSU’s five-run eighth inning in game two.

Joe King also played a big role in both games, earning the victory in game one and the save in game two.

With the sweep, the Penguins (14-27, 8-13 Horizon League) jumped the Crusaders (16-25, 6-12) in the league standings.

Larivee’s winning hit in game one came after the Penguins tied the score on Trey Bridis’ sacrifice fly in the eighth. King worked out of a jam in the top of the ninth to keep the game deadlocked, and Larivee doubled in pinch-runner DarShawn Armstrong from second base.

YSU led 4-0 after three innings before Valparaiso rallied to take the lead. In the second, Nico Padovan led off with a single and scored on Lou Cardona’s sacrifice fly. Kyle Benyo followed with his eighth home run of the season with Lorenzo Arcuri on board to make the score 3-0. Bridis singled in Andrew Kendrick with two outs in the third inning to increase the margin to four.

After Valparaiso rallied to tie and then take the lead, YSU tied it again in the eighth. Kendrick was hit by an 0-2 pitch, and Padovan followed with a single that moved him to third. Bridis followed with a sacrifice fly.

Valparaiso led 7-4 entering the bottom of the eighth in game two.

Bridis and Arcuri walked to start the inning, and Cardona followed with a single to load the bases for Larivee. The senior outfielder came up big again with a two-run double to the left-field corner.

Pinch-runner Anthony Rohan scored the tying run on Web Charles’ chopper to the left of the mound, and the winning runs scored on an error.

The series finale is at 3 p.m. today.