ECU Sweeps Marist With a 10-5 Sunday Win in Clark-LeClair Stadium

ECU won their fourth straight game with a 10-5 Sunday victory over Marist in Clark-LeClair Stadium.

Turner Brown led a 14 hit ECU attack going three for five with a pair of triples and two runs while Bryant Packard added a home run and two hits for the Pirates. Brady Lloyd and Thomas Francisco also had a pair of hits for the Pirates in the victory.

“We talked about it all the time. Energy Sunday. We want to come out here and have more energy than the other team because normally the team with the most energy on Sunday has the best chance to win,” said Brown, “Last night was long so we wanted to come out with a ton of energy today with the pedal to the metal.”

Cam Colmore(1-0) picked up the win for ECU(12-5) in relief, yielding just one earned run on three hits with four strikeouts in 3.1 innings of work. Trey Benton got the Sunday start for ECU and gave up four earned runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts in two and two thirds innings of work.

Conor McNamara fell to 0-1 with the loss for Marist (4-8), giving up six hits and six runs in his two inning of work in a relief role.

“I don’t want to use word threaten but we needed to have a lot of energy. That was a point of emphasis in the team meeting,” said Cliff Godwin after the game, “Empty the tank and finish the job. We don’t get these opportunities a ton to sweep a team so when you do, make sure that you empty the tank and have a ton of energy.”

It did not take long for ECU to strike in the very first inning when a Jake Washer single up the middle brought Bryant Packard across home plate for the first run of the game. Then Brady Lloyd scored on a balk later in the inning to give the Pirates an early 2-0 lead.

Marist got in the swing of things in the top of the second when the Red Foxes scored of pair of second inning runs on a Robbie Armitage sac fly and a Brian Hart single that tied the game at 2-2.

Bryant Packard’s homer in the bottom of the second inning scored a pair of ECU runs and the Pirates retook the lead at 4-2.

Armitage was at it again in the top of the third with a sac fly to left field that scored a run before Hart’s single scored another Marist run that tied the game at 4-4.

ECU broke the game wide open in the bottom of the third with four runs that gave the Pirates a commanding 8-4 lead. But the Pirates weren’t through because Thomas Francisco’s base knock to right in the same inning brought Turner Brown home and the ECU lead expanded to 9-4.

Marist ate into the ECU lead when Hart’s base hit down the left field line scored a run in the top of the sixth inning.

But Ryder Giles’ sacrifice bunt kept the Pirates out front in the bottom of the inning, 10-5.