FARMVILLE, Va. –
Michael Osinski played hero twice in a span of two innings, scoring the tying run in the seventh and then blasting a go-ahead, two-run double in the bottom of the eighth to power Longwood to a 12-7 win over Lehigh in the series finale Sunday afternoon at Buddy Bolding Stadium.
Longwood's junior shortstop finished 3-for-4 with two doubles, four runs and a pair of RBI, capping a three-game sweep for the Lancers (16-30) in their final home game of the season. The Lancers clawed back twice from deficits, eventually putting Lehigh away with a five-run eighth inning.
Osinski started and finished the comeback win for the Lancers, ripping a leadoff double in the bottom of the seventh and scoring on a perfectly executed hit-and-run by
Ryan Shull to tie the game at 7-7. His next turn at the plate came with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth, and he delivered a two-run double that sent in his team-leading 35th RBI of the season.
The late-game comeback featured six runs over the final three innings, which backed three shutout innings out of the bullpen by Longwood sophomore southpaw
Jon Peterson (2-2). Peterson took over in the bottom of the sixth with Longwood trailing 7-6 and shut down Lehigh (21-29) the rest of the way, allowing just one hit while striking out four in 3.0 innings of work.
Lancer senior
Luke Simpson got the honor of recording the final out in his final home game at Longwood, stepping in for Peterson in the bottom of the ninth and providing the curtain call on behalf of his seven-member senior class on senior day.
Simpson's senior teammates
Brandon Harvell and
Alex Lewis also got in on the senior festivities, raking two hits apiece in the final home outings of their respective four-year careers.
Lewis was was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored with an RBI single and a walk in his final plate appearance in Farmville.
Harvell, Longwood's all-time leader in games played with 203 career appearances for the Blue & White, went 2-for-5, tying his career high with two RBI, and picked up an RBI single in his final at-bat at Buddy Bolding Stadium.
Juniors
Sammy Miller and
Mac McCafferty, a fourth-year junior, each joined in with multi-hit games Sunday. The two Pennsylvania natives combined for five hits against Lehigh Sunday to back fellow Keystone State native Peterson's outing.
Lehigh reliever Mark Washington (1-3) took the loss after Longwood touched him up for five runs – four earned – over his 3.1 innings.
Simpson, Harvell, Lewis,
James Barry,
Tyler Wirsu,
Devin Gould, and
Cody Wager were each honored before the start of Sunday's win.
Barry, Harvell, Lewis, Simpson, and Wirsu each made an appearance in Sunday's win with Barry making his fifth career start and Wirsu pitching one inning out of the bullpen. Barry started a 4-6-3 double play in the second inning to shut down a Lehigh offense that scored three runs in the top of the first inning.
Longwood trailed 3-0 after the top of the first, battling back with a four-run bottom of the first. The Lancers picked up 16 hits in the game, their second-highest hit total of the season.
The sweep is the first three-game sweep since the Lancers took all three in a series at Savannah State opened the month of March.
Longwood plays one final midweek game at Norfolk State Wednesday before playing consecutive weekend series at UNC Asheville and Campbell. Longwood (5-13 Big South), Campbell (7-11 Big South), Radford (8-10 Big South), and UNC Asheville (8-10 Big South) are all fighting for the final two spots in the Big South Tournament, separated by three games in the standings.
First pitch at Norfolk State is set for 4 p.m. Wednesday.
#GoWood
