Contact: Chris Kilcoyne

Campbell, Jacksonville Baseball Split Doubleheader

*Story Courtesy of the JU SID Department

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville University senior leftfielder Chad Hauseman (Pottstown, Pa.) homered in his first two at-bats, giving him seven for the season, and freshman first baseman Gordie Gronkowski (Buffalo, N.Y.) added his first career home run as the Dolphins pounded Campbell, 13-7, in game two to split an Atlantic Sun Conference doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Alexander Brest Field. The Camels won game one, 3-1.

Hauseman went 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI, Gronkowski went 2-for-4 with a home run and an RBI, junior rightfielder Clint Hart (Jacksonville/Paxon) went 2-for-4 with a triple and an RBI, sophomore designated hitter Alex Jamieson (Sarasota, Fla.) went 2-for-4 with a double, junior shortstop Orlando Diaz (Downers Grove, Ill.) went 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBI, and sophomore catcher Jon Galui (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) went 1-for-1 with three RBI. Junior centerfielder Rob Hudson (Garden City, Mich.) added his 10^th double of the season.

JU (9-15, 5-7 A-Sun) jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first inning as the first six batters hit safely and the Dolphins batted around. Hart led off with a triple over the head of Campbell centerfielder Jeff Blick, and Hauseman followed with a home run to left. Hudson doubled to left, Gronkowski hit a single between first and second, Jamieson smashed single up the middle, and sophomore third baseman Tom Alford (Jacksonville/Mandarin) doubled down the right field line to chase Campbell starter Rob Finch, who allowed six earned runs without recording an out.

Campbell (7-16, 4-11) got a solo homer from Jason Brown in the second, but Hauseman answered with his second blast of the day, this time deep to left-center. In the third, Blick hit the first of two solo home runs on the day, the first two of his career, but JU came back with two more on Galui's two-run double to push the lead to 9-2. The Camels rallied in the fifth as JU starter Brett Nagy (Jacksonville/Bolles), who allowed four earned runs on only two hits in 4.0 innings walked the first two batters of the inningand gave up a single to Blick. Nagy did not record an out in the fifth as sophomore righty James Murdock (Memphis, Tenn.) came in and held the damage to four runs that cut the lead to 9-6. Murdock recorded his second save of the series and his career, allowing one earned run on four hits and striking out four in 3.0 innings.

The Dolphins answered back in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs on a lead-off double by Jamieson, an RBI triple to center by Diaz, an RBI sacrifice bunt by senior second baseman Robby Cichra (Plano, Texas) and an RBI single by Hart. Gronksowski's solo shot in the sixth pushed the lead to 13-6, but Blick's second homer of the day provided the final margin.

Game one was the opposite of game two as Campbell's Josh Blades pitched a complete game, allowing one run on three hits and striking out four to lead the Camels to a 3-1 victory. Blades held the Dolphins hitless through five innings and retired 15 batters in a row after hitting junior third baseman Larry Best-Berfet (Newark, N.J.) with a pitch to lead off the game.

JU senior righty Ryan Courson (North Ft. Myers, Fla.) started off strong, but ran into trouble in the third, giving up back-to-back doubles to Alston Hatch and Blick to lead off the inning. Tom Rispoli hit an RBI single, Josh Cotton doubled down the left-field line, and Jason Brown singled to give the Camels a 3-0 lead and chase Courson from the game. Sophomore Josh Deel (Jacksonville/Wolfson) came in and forced Kyle Ellenz to line into a double play to end the inning. Deel was solid in relief, shutting the Camels out on two hits and striking out five in 4.2 innings.

Diaz singled for the first Dolphin hit of the game to lead off the sixth and scored on Hudson's double. Hudson moved to third on a wild pitch, but Hauseman flied out to center to end the inning. The Dolphins threatened again in the seventh as Hart led off with a double and Jamieson walked. Alford failed to lay down a successful sacrifice bunt as the Camels were able to force out Hart at third. Junior designated hitter Fernando Diaz (Miami, Fla.) grounded out to short, moving the runners up to second and third, but Orlando Diaz popped up to first base to end the game.

The Fighting Camels return to action on Monday, March 24 as they host Brown at Taylor Field. The first pitch is slated for 5:00 p.m. [Game One | Game Two]