April 9, 2003

Final Stats

NEW ORLEANS, La. - Sophomore second baseman Tommy Manzella went 3-for-6 with a triple, a home run and four RBI, and the Green Wave got a solid performance from "Johnny Wholestaff" as the Tulane University baseball team defeated cross-town foe UNO 15-5 in game two of the Second Annual Popeyes Cup Wednesday at Maestri Field.

Tulane used a season-high seven pitchers in the contest with freshman Billy Mohl (3-1) getting the win with a 2.0-inning start and sophomore Kelly Comarda closing out the game with 2.1 innings of scoreless relief with three strikeouts. With the victory, the Green Wave clinch their second straight Popeyes Cup Championship and improve to 23-11 on the year. UNO, meanwhile, falls to 15-17.

It took a while for the Tulane hitters to adjust to the steady 35 mile-per-hour wind coming off Lake Pontchartrain just beyond the left field wall, but once they did, the Green Wave put up runs in bunches. Following two scoreless innings, Tulane plated four in the third and seven in the fourth to take control of the game. Tulane also scored a pair in the fifth courtesy of a two-run home run by senior designated hitter Aaron Feldman and another in the seventh on an RBI-fielder's choice off the bat of freshman left fielder Nathan Southard before Manzella closed out the scoring with a solo homer in the ninth.

UNO managed a pair of runs in the fifth and three in the seventh on a three-run bomb by first baseman Gabe Trevizo. The Green Wave were already ahead by double-digits runs before Trevizo's homer, however, and the runs proved to be academic only.

Junior shortstop Tony Giarratano, who went 3-for-5 with a pair of stolen bases, got things going for Tulane in the third with a leadoff triple, and junior third baseman Turner Brumby put the Green Wave on the board with a single one at-bat later. Following a fielder's choice by junior first baseman Michael Aubrey - who went 2-for-4 with two walks and a pair of stolen baes - and a double to right by senior center fielder Jonny Kaplan, Feldman lifted a sacrifice fly to left to make it 2-0. Southard walked one hitter later, and Manzella made it a four-run inning with a two-RBI triple.

Tulane blew the game open in the fourth with four hits and took advantage of a hit batsman, two walks, and a UNO error to plate seven runs in the frame. Junior catcher Brian Bormaster got things going by getting plunked to lead off the inning, Giarratano walked and Brumby singled to lead the bases. Aubrey scored Bormater with fielder's choice, stole second, advanced to third on a fly out to right by Feldman, and combine with Giarratano to pull off a double-steal to make it 6-0.

Following a fly out, Aubrey and Kaplan gave the Green Wave their second double-steal of the frame to push the lead to seven, Southard hit an RBI-double, Manzella ripped a run-scoring single and Bormaster closed out the scoring with a two-run double as Tulane sent 11 batters to the plate in the stanza.

Feldman's homer in the fifth gave Tulane a 13-0 lead, but UNO got on the board in the home half of the frame on RBI-singles by second baseman Justin Gray and left fielder Drew Pizza to cut the lead to 11. Following a scoreless sixth, Tulane scored a run in the seventh courtesy of a pair of Privateer errors and Southard's fielder's choice RBI. UNO cut the lead to nine in the bottom of the inning via Trevizo's three-run shot to right, but that would be all the Green Wave would allow en route to the lopsided victory.

UNO sent five pitchers to the mound, but none could keep the Green Wave off the board as Tulane scored at least one run off all five Privateer hurlers. Starter Josh Euper was tagged with the loss after giving up four earned runs on three hits in 2.2 innings.

Tulane returns to action on Friday, April 11 when the Green Wave takes on Houston at 6:30 p.m. in Turchin Stadium. This weekend's series against the Cougars will be crucial to Tulane's Conference USA title hopes and begins a big stretch for the Green Wave as the boys in Olive and Blue travel to LSU on Tuesday, April 15 and return to The Big Easy the following weekend for a series with UAB, which is currently in second place in the league standings. For ticket information, contact the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office at (504) 861-WAVE.