READING, PA. - Ursinus College head coach Stan Exeter earned his 400th career win as the Bears defeated Albright College 9-4 on Tuesday afternoon at Kelchner Field in non-conference action.
Junior pitcher Casey Murphy took the mound for the Bears and turned in an absolute gem. He pitched seven innings, allowing just two earned runs, and fanned 14 batters in route to his second win of the season. At the plate, freshman Jakob Cantor led the way going 3 for 5 with two runs scored.
With the win, the Bears improve to 7-10 on the season after winning their second consecutive contest. Meanwhile, the Lions of the Middle Atlantic Conference fall to 1-14 overall.
Albright jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first after Dylan Harlos doubled to left scoring Nick Sklenarik. Murphy responded by striking out the side in the second and retiring the next three batters in order in the third.
In the fourth, Keegan Stem led off with a single and advanced to second after a throwing error by the Lions shortstop. Stem advanced 90 feet after a groundout to second and scored after Jared Minnichbach grounded out to first.
Albright regained the lead in the bottom of the fourth after a single by Chris Thomas scored Josh Halye to make the score 2-1. Murphy got out of the jam after a flyout to centerfield ended the inning.
The Bears answered in the fifth inning scoring six runs after being issued five free passes. Max Gadsden led off with a walk, stole second, and advanced to third via a balk. Next, Solomon Griffith was issued a free pass and Dylan Crammer lifted a sacrifice fly to right field scoring Gadsden. After a flyout to left field for the second out, the Bears rallied for five more runs in the inning. Stem reached first via an error that allowed Griffith to score and back-to-back walks brought home Cantor. After a pitching change for Albright, Dylan Runsdorf picked up an RBI after a base-on-balls and Nick Diaz delivered with a single to left scoring Brad Rivera and Matteo Falcone. The Lions finally got out of the inning after a flyout to right field.
Murphy allowed two base hits in the bottom half of the fifth inning but recorded back-to-back strikeouts to get out the jam. The right-hander struck out two more Lions in the sixth, and the Bears added an insurance run in the seventh after Dylan Runsdorf lifted a sacrifice fly to centerfield. Leading 8-2, Murphy finished his day by fanning three more batters in the seventh.
Alex Crocamo and David Murphy closed out the last two innings for Ursinus for th Bears. At the plate, Griffith went 2 for 4 while Diaz and Runsdorf each had two RBI's.
The Bears will return to action on Thursday as they host Rosemont College at 3:30pm.