Baseball ends six-game skid with 4-1 win over St. Joe’s

It may not have been a season-defining win. It didn't come in an ACC series. And it certainly won't help its immediate postseason chances. But after what was more than a week without a win, the Terrapin baseball team was happy to take a victory however it could get one.

The Terps defeated Saint Joseph's, 4-1, at Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium last night to snap a six-game losing streak.

"Well, I think it's good to get back on the positive side of things," coach Erik Bakich said, "and have the scoreboard be in our favor at the end of the game. That was a good thing."

"I think it was real big for us, you know, get back on track and everything," pitcher Jeff Crosswhite said. "Get it rolling again."

Two runs in the bottom of the first inning helped the Terps (18-25) jump on the Hawks (14-26) early, with an RBI single from designated hitter Austin Kilbourne and first baseman Curtis Lazar's run-scoring groundout providing the offense.

Three innings later, center fielder Korey Wacker's RBI single plated left fielder Michael Montville to make it 3-1, and second baseman Kyle Convissar scored on an error in the sixth to give the Terps a 4-1 lead.

"Offensively, I thought we had opportunities to expand the game and blow it open a little bit," Bakich said. "But we did enough — we did enough to scratch four runs across. That was all we needed with the good pitching performance we got today."

Pitcher Charlie Haslup, whose 15 prior appearances had been in relief, drew the start for the Terps and allowed only one run in three innings. After Haslup departed, the bullpen didn't allow another hit.

Crosswhite dominated, using a devastating curveball to toss three perfect innings while striking out five. The redshirt freshman earned the win, the first of his Terp career.

"I felt real good. I didn't have my best outing last time against Virginia Tech," said Crosswhite, referring to his 0.1 innings of work on Sunday against the Hokies, against whom he allowed three runs. "I felt good to get back out there and get in the groove of things again, get my confidence back.

"It just felt good to be out there. I was in a groove definitely, just throwing strikes, just having fun out there."

After control issues and countless walks had ravaged his pitching staff, Bakich was obviously pleased with Crosswhite's control and efficiency. Crosswhite threw 48 pitches in three innings, more than 70 percent of which went for strikes.

"He settled down the game down for us, and that was great," Bakich said. "The fact that they didn't get any hits once he got in the game was huge."

Even Jake Stinnett, typically a third baseman, got in on the pitching success. Making his season debut on the mound, Stinnett worked two scoreless innings and struck out three Hawks en route to the save.

"We recruited Jake as a two-way player. We knew he was a pitcher. He had some arm issues in high school that prevented him from pitching earlier, but that was what we were looking for. We were waiting for the right opportunity to get him in the game," Bakich said. "We've got a new toy in the bullpen. I think he's going to be a stud out of the pen in the years to come."

Afterward, the team pointed to a pre-game meeting that set the tone for the evening. Addressing his team, Bakich repeated the message that he first communicated after Sunday's loss to Virginia Tech, reiterating that the Terps' week of horrors was a thing of the past.

"I told the kids before the game to look more at last week as simply just a week that was just a speed bump in the road, compared to the entire body of work that we've been able to accomplish in this program in a short amount of time," Bakich said. "We're certainly not going to let one week put a damper on that. I just wanted them to get back to focusing on the fact that we've done a lot of great things, and we're going to continue to great things and get right back on track."

The message was well received, and the Terps got in the win column for the first time since April 17.

"We were a little frustrated with how the games had been going, so this win ... I'm really just happy right now," Convissar said. "It's really great to get a win and start feeling good. ... I think this one is going to help us out."

schneider@umdbk.com