The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Rice
Senior Day Goes Off Without a Hitch
5/20/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – On a day that seemed all but certain to be called before an official game could be counted due to weather, Mother Nature carefully danced around Young Memorial Field long enough for the UAB baseball team to secure a win on Senior Day. The Blazers won 9-4 over Rice after the game was called in the bottom of the eighth inning due to rain. The Green & Gold cap off 2017 with a 24-31 overall record, 9-21 in Conference USA, and 17-14 at home. The Owls are 27-29 and 16-14 in conference.
The Blazers honored nine players before the game in their final game with the program. Cory Eller, Eric Henderson, Adam Lamar, Thomas Lowery, Riley McCown, Dylan Munger, Pierce Ressmeyer, and student-manager Jesse Shoop were each recognized before the game for their accomplishments on and off the field during their time at UAB.
Thomas got the start on the mound and was lights out over 5.1 innings. The righty pitched a shutout while giving up just five hits and no walks, striking out two batters to finish the year with a 3-2 mark and a team-best 3.40 ERA.
More importantly than the win, the Blazers were able to play all seven seniors who dressed this weekend. Eller, Lowery, and Lamar all played in Thursday night’s game while McCown, Ressmeyer, and Thomas started today, and Munger came on in relief. The sixth-year senior, who has displayed unwavering resiliency in fighting through multiple injuries, left the field for the final time in a UAB jersey with tears running down his cheeks
“In the big scheme of things, it didn’t matter one way or another, but we still wanted to go out with a win rather than a loss,” said UAB head coach Brian Shoop. “Main thing today was trying to honor the seniors. We wanted to make it a very special day for them and their families because they’re very special to us. We were able to get them to exit the field in a neat matter today like the other seniors did on Thursday night. We were going to do that for Riley in the ninth but weren’t able to do so. All of the families were together for our traditional dinner in the cages afterwards. On one hand, it’s disappointing to not be in the tournament. But to hear these families to talk about how thrilled they are with their sons and the accomplishments in their lives, it puts things into perspective. The guys went out and slide on the tarp afterwards. They had an absolute ball together and really love each other.”
The Blazers scored two runs in the opening frame with the first being a bases loaded walk with Carter Pharis at the plate. Two batters later, Brewer Hicklen took off from third base in the middle of the pitcher’s wind up and slide-in safely for a straight steal of home base, the first time a Blazer had done that since Chase Davis did it versus Marshall on March 20, 2014.
Two more would go up on the board on a wild play in the third inning. Jim Jeffries chopped a ball on the infield with runners in scoring position. The ball was retrieved by the Rice pitcher but thrown away on the attempt to get Jeffries out at home. Pharis, coming in from third base, would have scored anyways on the play, but it allowed Riley McCown to come all the way home from second to push the lead to 4-0.
Stellar pitching from Thomas and Garrett Whitlock got UAB through seven innings without allowing a run. The Blazers would score five more across the sixth and seventh innings. Ressmeyer singled in the sixth to score Zack Davis and Pharis launched his third home run of the season next up to score Ressmeyer and Hicklen. Ressmeyer with another RBI single added the final run in the seventh, this time plating Tyler Tolbert.
Rice would score four runs in the top of the eighth inning but would not get another chance due up. The game went into a lightning delay going into the bottom of the eighth inning and play never resumed after a three-hour delay due to a combination of rain and lightning.
Pharis’ bomb was the fifth of his career. The sophomore first baseman went 2-for2 at the dish with two runs, four RBI, and added a pair of walks and a stolen base. Pharis bumped his average to .305 for the season after entering the game slightly below the milestone mark for his .300-plus season with the Blazers.
Hicklen finished 1-for-3 at the plate with the pair of runs. The sophomore’s stolen base was the 39th of his career, giving him sole possession of 10th in school history. He finishes the regular season leading Conference USA in stolen bases with 18 this year.
Ressmeyer closed out his first and lone season with UAB with another big day. The designated hitter tallied two hits on four at-bats while driving in a pair of runs and scoring once himself. Ressmeyer also walked once and stole a base.
McCown got in on the senior success for the finale with a 2-for-2 ballgame, one run, and one double. The corner outfielder also walked once and was hit by a pitch.
Davis closed his freshman campaign with multiple runs. He was 1-for-2 with two runs, a walk, hit by pitch, and stolen base. Davis scored the Blazers first run of the game after being plunked by a 1-0 pitch in the first.
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