Pitt
Louisville
Baseball Opens BIG EAST Tournament With 7-2 Victory
5/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Final Stats
Highlights
Coach Jordano Interview
Iannazzo Interview
Clearwater, Fla. - Pitt baseball won its opening game of the BIG EAST Tournament on Wednesday morning, rolling past Louisville, 7-2 at Bright House Field.
Junior Matt Iannazzo (8-3) tossed his fifth complete game of the season while senior Kevan Smith hit two home runs and fellow senior David Chester added a round-tripper of his own. Both hitters were named to the All-BIG EAST first-team and Iannazzo nabbed second-team accolades.
Iannazzo was dominant, allowing just two runs (one earned) on eight hits. The southpaw struck out four Cardinals without allowing a walk.
The Panthers (33-21) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Smith hit his first home run of the game, a line drive just over the left-field wall.
In the second inning, Pitt added to its lead when senior Philip Konieczny blistered a ball to third base, scoring junior Rick Devereaux on the play.
Following two outs in the bottom of the third, Smith and Chester hit back-to-back solo-blasts over the left-center fence.
Pitt increased its lead to seven runs, posting a three spot in the bottom of the sixth. Senior Travis Whitmore tripled down the right field line, before scoring on a Casey Roche fielder's choice. Sophomore Evan Oswald rounded out the scoring, plating Roche on a single to center.
The Cardinals (29-28) got on the board in the eight, scoring two runs, but Iannazzo retired the final four batters to close out the game.
The Panthers remain in the winner's bracket and will play St. John's tomorrow at 1 p.m. The Red Storm defeated Cincinnati 8-3 this afternoon.
Live scores, stats and free streaming video of all BIG EAST games are available at the conference's Tournament Central page.
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