Box Score

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Bryan MacPhail pitched eight shutout innings for his first win of the spring, and Dickinson added just enough run support to take a 3-1 victory in Centennial Conference (CC) baseball action on Thursday.

The Red Devils (11-12-1, 8-3-1 CC) had eight of their nine batters with a base hit, including five with two-hit days, en route to outhitting the Bullets (10-14-1, 3-8 CC) by a 13-4 margin.

Dan Armstrong (Downingtown, PA/Downingtown) picked up the hard-luck loss for Gettysburg, pitching seven-plus innings and allowing just one earned run on nine hits with four strikeouts.

The two pitchers battled through six innings without allowing more than two baserunners in any inning before Dickinson cracked the scoreboard in the seventh.

Tre Dwinell led off the inning with a bunt single and advanced to second on a passed ball. With one out in the inning, Dwinell stole third before a Ryan Anderson singled to center to make it 1-0.

After advancing to second on a wild pitch and to third on a long fly to right, Anderson was left standing on third when Armstrong got Phil Newman swinging to record his fourth, and final, strikeout.

MacPhail retired six of the next seven batters he faced to keep it a 1-0 game going to the ninth.

Greg Terebetski singled to center to lead off the visitor ninth for his second hit of the afternoon. He stole second before Anderson laid down a bunt to put runners on the corners with nobody out. Andrew Burger singled to center to bring home Terebetski and move Anderson over to third.

Gettysburg reliever Tobin Whitman (Lyme Center, NH/Hanover) caught Burger heading to second for the first out of the frame.

With the suicide squeeze on, Newman placed a bunt up the third baseline to score Anderson to make it 3-0 before Eric Simoni grounded out to end the inning.

Down to their last three outs, the Bullets' ninth-inning rally came up short.

After MacPhail notched his sixth strikeout of the afternoon, Mike Luteran (Livingston, NJ/Livingston) singled down the left-field line and gave way to pinch-runner Jon Giordano (Massapequa Park, NY/Massapequa). Brendan McDonald (Bennington, VT/Mt. Anthony Union) followed with a walk to force the Red Devils to the bullpen.

Matt Eonta came on with the tying run at the plate, looking to tally Dickinson's first save of the season. Ben Carey (Colchester, CT/Northern Valley) reached on an error to load the bases.

Chase Straub (Perkasie, PA/Pennridge) reached on a fielder's choice, allowing Giordano to score and cut the deficit to 3-1, but Brian Pernice (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown) grounded into his own fielder's choice to end the threat.

With Pernice's final fielder's choice, his team-leading 13-game hitting streak came to an end with an 0-for-5 day at the plate. As a team, the Bullets only managed four hits, marking the first time since Mar. 23 at Johns Hopkins – a stretch of nine contests – that they failed to reach at least 10 hits. It was the lowest hit total since Gettysburg managed only two hits against FDU-Florham on Mar. 14 in Florida.

The Bullets stranded nine runners on the afternoon in extending their current skid to five games. During the slide, Gettysburg has stranded a total of 42 runners and is hitting .204 (11-for-54) with runners in scoring position, including 0-for-3 with bases loaded.

MacPhail lasted 8 1/3 innings, allowing the one unearned run on four hits with six strikouts.

Whitman recorded two strikeouts and allowed two runs on four hits in his two innings of work.

The Bullets look to snap the skid when they finish the season series with Dickinson on Friday in Carlisle. Game time is 3:30 p.m.

Bryan MacPhail, Matt Eonta (9) and Tre Dwinell; Dan Armstrong, Tobin Whitman (8) and Mike Luteran. WP: MacPhail (1-5). LP: Armstong (2-3). S: Eonta (1). SO-BB: MacPhail 6-5, Eonta 0-0; Armstong 4-1, Whitman 2-0.

-30-