Boxscore
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. -- Senior second baseman
Billy Messer clobbered a game-winning, three-run home run over the right-field fence in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday afternoon to give the Slippery Rock University baseball team a come-from-behind 4-3 win over visiting Lake Erie College (Ohio) in non-conference action at Jack Critchfield Park.
Messer's circuit clout, his second of the season, capped off a four-run Rock outburst after two outs had been recorded in the eighth. One batter earlier, junior shortstop
Adam Jury slapped an RBI single to right field to plate the first Rock run.
The final at-bat explosion gave SRU a 25-21 overall record as it turned its attention to Wednesday's first-round game in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championships at Point Stadium in Johnstown.
Sophomore right-hander
Colin McCoy picked up the win Sunday in relief of Rock starting pitcher
Vince Lloyd, who allowed two earned runs on four hits, struck out one and walked three in the first four frames.
McCoy allowed one earned run on three hits, struck out two batters, walked two and improved his season record to 2-1.
Sunday's game was the third straight in which McCoy appeared, all in less than 24 hours. He was the hard-luck losing pitcher Saturday night when Lake Erie won a 10-9 decision on a dropped two-out fly ball in the top of the seventh and final inning.
Lake Erie starting pitcher Adam Beach (4-2) was the hard-luck loser Sunday. He allowed six hits in seven and two-thirds scoreless innings before SRU got five hits in its decisive eighth-inning rally. Beach struck out five and walked two.
Lake Erie (18-26) plated two runs in the top of the third inning against Lloyd and added a single run off McCoy in the top of the eighth to extend its lead to 3-0.
The Rock had three chances to trim the 2-0 deficit at least in half as it had a runner on second base with one out in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, but failed to convert the opportunities into tallies.
Junior center fielder
Matt Howard got the decisive bottom of the seventh rally started with a one-out single to left field. One out later, junior catcher
Mitchell Monas singled off Beach's ankle and into short left field, which allowed Howard to sprint around to third base. Jury then slapped a single through the right side of the infield to plate Howard, move Monas to second base and set the stage for Messer's game-winning roundtripper.
Jury, Messer, freshman third baseman
Jamison Walck and junior first baseman
Derek DiRuscia each finished the game with a pair of hits to pace an 11-hit Rock attack.
DiRuscia slapped a double down the right-field line with one out in the bottom of the fifth for the only Rock extra-base hit aside from Messer's game-winning HR.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
The Rock, the No. 4 seed from the PSAC-Western Division, will look to ride the momentum of Sunday's comeback win into Wednesday's 12:30 p.m. opening-round playoff game against PSAC-Eastern Division champion West Chester (35-10).
The winner of The Rock-West Chester game will meet the winner of the tournament's opening game (9:30 a.m. Wednesday) between PSAC-West runner-up California (28-16) and PSAC-East No. 3 seed Mansfield (32-15) in a 3:30 p.m. game Thursday. The Rock-WCU loser and the Cal-Mansfield loser meet head-on at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in an elimination game and would be the first team to exit the eight-team tournament.
Wednesday's third first-round game (3:30 p.m.) will pit PSAC-East No. 2 Kutztown (34-11) against PSAC-West No. 3 Mercyhurst (24-20) while the fourth and final opening-round matchup (6:30 p.m.) features PSAC-West champion Indiana (29-22) against PSAC-East No. 4 East Stroudsburg (26-18).
The PSAC Championships continue through Saturday, The conference champion earns an automatic berth in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional tournament, which will run May 13-16 at a site yet to be determined.