Hartzell Shows Old Form as Eagles and Knights Divide Baseball Twinbill
March 29, 2003

Tough times don’t last. Tough pitchers do.

It’s been tough going for Ashland University senior righthander Ryan Hartzell in the first part of the 2003 baseball season. A year ago Hartzell led the nation in wins, going 14-3 with a 3.68 ERA. He went into the first game of Saturday’s (Mar. 29) doubleheader against Gannon with a 2-3 record and a 7.58 ERA.

On a bitterly cold afternoon in Ashland, Hartzell was at his cold-hearted best. Pitching like he did for the first three years of his AU career, Hartzell shut out the Golden Knights, 3-0, allowing just one hit, a flare to right field by senior Justin Lamanna leading off the sixth inning.

Unfortunately for AU, the Eagles’ other top gun, senior righty Jon Krugman, couldn’t match Hartzell. In the second game, Gannon got to Krugman for five runs in the fifth inning on the way to a 5-3 win.

The split leaves Ashland at 16-8, 5-1 in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. Gannon is 7-9 and 2-4. The teams will play two more games in Ashland on Sunday, beginning at noon.

Hartzell allowed one walk, hit one batter and struck out 10 in evening his record at 3-3. Hartzell had retired 12 consecutive batters before Lamanna’s single. Eight of his 10 strikeouts came on called third strikes. Hartzell struck out the side in the third, all on called strike threes.

The Eagles gave their ace lots of breathing room by scoring three times in the second inning. Senior first baseman Butch Kaufman drove in the first run with a double and sophomore second baseman Adam Wilson had a two-out, two-run single to bring in the final two runs. AU had only five hits off of GU starter and loser Sean Gority (2-1) and they all came in the second inning. Senior designated hitter Brock Wiskochil and junior catcher Josh Gaub also had singles in the second and senior outfielder Adam Whetstone had a single in the fifth.

AU jumped in front, 3-0 in the second game. In the second inning, AU scored twice. Senior outfielder Adam Whetstone singled to drive in Gaub, who had walked and a single by freshman outfielder David Waters moved Whetstone to third. He came home from there on a single by senior shortstop Tim Hinchliffe.

The Eagles added another run in the third. Junior center fielder Brandon Cornell, who was 3-for-4 with a triple and two singles, coaxed a leadoff walk from GU righty Nick Leslie. Cornell stole second base and came home on single by Wiskochil.

A three-run cushion would normally be plenty for Krugman, who was sailing along until the fifth. In that frame he allowed three hits and the Eagles committed two errors. The key hit came from junior outfielder Chris Matteucci, who had a two-run double. Krugman walked in one run and sophomore shortstop Frank Armeni singled to bring in another. The other run scored on an error by Cornell.

Krugman went the distance and allowed eight hits. He whiffed six, walked three and hit two. The loss leaves him at 3-2.

Leslie was in trouble all afternoon, but he never broke. AU collected eight hits and had at least one hit in every inning but the fourth. That’s the only time all day Leslie (1-2) put the Eagles down in order. He walked three and struck out four.

The loss snapped a five-game AU win streak.