University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

Published: March 29, 2007

Baseball

Central Michigan 3, UB 0
Central Michigan 11, UB 6
Central Michigan 10, UB 0

UB put on a fine defensive effort Friday afternoon, but was not able to get its bats going and fell to Central Michigan, 3-0, in Theunissen Stadium.

Senior Adam Ruszkowski got the start for the Bulls and gave the team 6.2 solid innings on the mound. Ruszkowski allowed three runs, but just one came after the second inning and none after the fourth. Ruszkowski continued to show his pinpoint control, walking none of the 31 batters that he faced. In fact, Ruszkowski has walked just one batter all season.

Offensively, UB had a hard time getting anything started, managing just three hits on the afternoon.

On Saturday, UB was unable to hold on to a 6-2 lead, allowing nine unanswered runs and falling to Central Michigan, 11-6.

Down by four runs going into the bottom of the fifth, the Chippewas scored two runs that inning and added four more in the seventh to take an 8-6 lead. CMU added three insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth to take a five-run lead and the victory.

The Bulls dropped the final game of the series, falling, 10-0, Sunday afternoon. The loss drops UB's record to 1-15 on the season and 0-3 in conference play.

Sophomore Zach Anderson got the start for the Bulls and pitched three scoreless innings before Central Michigan struck in the bottom of the fourth. The Chippewas scored two runs in the frame and never looked back.

The big blow came in the bottom of the sixth inning when the Chippewas scored seven runs.

The Bulls recorded nine hits, the same as CMU, but were unable to score any runs.

Softball

Illinois-Chicago 11, UB 1
Eastern Michigan 8, UB 6
Indiana 4, UB 0
Illinois-Chicago 13, UB 0
Indiana 10, UB 2

UB dropped all five of its games at the Indiana University Classic in Bloomington. The Bulls are now 2-25 for the season.

In Friday's opener, UB faced a tough opponent in the University of Illinois-Chicago. After the Flames torched the Bulls for five runs in the top of the first, UB put one of its own on the board in the bottom half of the inning.

UIC added six more in the top of the second on five hits to extend its lead by 10. Neither team went scored for the rest of the game.

Facing MAC foe Eastern Michigan in a game pushed back to Saturday because of rain, the Bulls came up short, falling to the Eagles, 8-6. In the second of two on the day, Buffalo lost to Indiana, 4-0.

Against Eastern Michigan, the Bulls got off to a sturdy start, cutting into the Eagles for three runs in the top of the first.

The Bulls maintained the lead until EMU answered with a three-run fourth inning.

In the top of the fifth, freshman Katie Ivancich hit a one-out single, later advancing to second on a wild pitch. A Marcy Hansen grounder advanced Ivancich to third and Colleen Greene scored Ivancich with a clutch two-out single to right-center to put the Bulls ahead, 4-3.

The Eagles scored four in the bottom half of the inning to take a 7-4 lead but the Bulls rallied back in the top of the sixth when Lacy Schneider drew a walk and advanced on a Dana Carter single up the middle. Freshman Samantha Gaetano sent a single to right to score Carter.

After allowing the Eagles to score one more in the bottom of the sixth, UB made its final push in the top of the seventh when Greene hit her second homer of the year over the left-field fence. The Bulls were unable to complete the comeback, however.

Against the Hoosiers, Indiana scored all four runs in the bottom of the fifth on five hits and was able to hold on for the 4-0 win.

In Sunday's doubleheader, the Bulls fell to Illinois-Chicago, 13-0, and dropped another to Indiana, 10-2.

Against the Flames in the opening game of the day, UB gave up six first-inning runs and seven more over the next three innings.

In the day's second game against the Hoosiers, Buffalo held Indiana to four runs through three innings and scored a run of its own in the top of the fourth. After both Barr and Carter drew walks, Gaetano singled to left-center to score freshman Sharon Barr and get the Bulls on the board.

With the Hoosiers owning a 5-1 advantage, Gaetano struck again in the top of the sixth inning, singling to left to score classmate Jackie Burke. Unfortunately, the comeback attempt was short-lived, as IU scored five in the bottom of the sixth to pull away with the 10-2 win.

The Bulls are slated to open up MAC competition tomorrow with a doubleheader at Toledo.

Outdoor Track and Field

Bulls find success at Wake Forest Open

UB completed action on Saturday at the Wake Forest Open with a pair of victories, five regional qualifiers and a new school record in the men's hurdles. There was no team scoring in the meet in a competition field of more than 50 colleges that included several former Olympians and world champions.

UB scored victories in two events. In the women's 3,000-meter run, sophomore Mary Veith topped the field with a clocking of 9:49.24, just four seconds off the UB record. The men's team picked up a victory in the B section finals of the high jump. Freshman Greg Tarshus took the event with a leap of 6-6.75 (2.00m).

Junior Vanessa Roelofsen picked up a second-place finish in the women's javelin with a throw of 149-4 (45.52m), earning an NCAA East Regional qualifying mark.

UB's women high jumpers had a pair of third-place finishes in the two sections of their events. Sophomore Caitlin Godin earned an NCAA regional mark in the A section with a jump of 5-8.75 (1.75m), while senior Patrice Coney finished third in the B section at 5-5 (1.65m).

Senior Reggie Rucker earned a spot in the finals of the men's 110-meter hurdles. Rucker won his heat of the finals in 14.25 seconds, finishing tied for fourth overall and breaking Todd Joki's UB record of 14.31 seconds. The time was also good enough for Rucker to earn a spot in the NCAA East Regionals in May.

Senior Roy Richards also had a fourth-place finish in the men's long jump with a regional qualifying mark of 24-1 (7.34m).

The Bulls are off until April 7 when they face MAC competition at the Ohio Bobcats Invitational.

Tennis

MEN'S

Ball State 5, UB 2

UB opened the MAC schedule on Friday night with a 5-2 loss to Ball State at the Village Glen Tennis Center. The Bulls are now 4-10 overall and 0-1 in the MAC.

The Bulls played the Cardinals close throughout the evening, with the two singles wins coming in three-set thrillers after dropping the opening set in both matches.

In the number-two match, Nikesh Singh Panthlia dropped his opening set to Aaron Phillips in a 7-4 tiebreaker, but rallied to take the final two sets. Singh Panthlia won the second set, 6-4, and then completed the comeback with a 6-3 win in the third set.

At number three, freshman Kirill Kolomytes scored a three-set victory that included tiebreakers in two of the sets. Kolomytes fell in a 7-4 tiebreaker to Jose Perdomo in the first set, then tied the match with a 6-4 win in the second set. In the third set, Kolomytes led 5-2 and had to rally to force another tiebreaker. Kolomytes then scored a 7-5 victory in the tiebreaker.

The Bulls will travel to Kalamazoo, Mich., this weekend for a match-up with MAC foe Western Michigan tomorrow, followed by a nonconference contest against Kalamazoo College on Saturday.

WOMEN'S

UB 6, Ball State 1
UB 5, Miami (OH) 2

UB opened the MAC slate with a pair of victories on the road. The Bulls scored a 6-1 victory over Ball State on Friday and then knocked off Miami (OH), 5-2, on Saturday.

The Bulls are now 10-1 overall (2-0 MAC) and have won four in a row since their lone loss, a 6-1 defeat by Cornell on March 4.

The Bulls took two of three doubles matches from the Cardinals to open play, then won five of six singles matches-all in straight sets-to pick up the victory.

In the Miami match, the Bulls clinched the win with victories at the top four singles spots, including a pair of 7-5 third-set wins.

The Bulls will face Bowling Green and MAC preseason favorite Western Michigan tomorrow and Saturday at home.