The Pitt Panthers defeated the Bradley Braves 4-3 today in the first game of the Music City College Classic.
The Panthers got out to a first inning lead on a fielder’s choice RBI by Ron Washington Jr. The Braves evened the score in the second inning. Panthers’ starter Matt Gilbertson hit left fielder Jackson Chatterton with a pitch. Chatterton advanced to second on a passed ball, and scored on a Jack Lincoln single as unforced mistakes hurt the Panthers again.
The Panthers loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth and broke the tie on a Sky Duff single, but Bradley starter Grant Jausel got two strikeouts and a groundout to keep the lead to one.
Pitt head coach Mike Bell went to his bullpen in the sixth, ending Gilbertson’s day with no earned runs and four strikeouts in 93 pitches of work.
In the sixth, Jordan Anderson bunted to the pitcher to allow Kyle Hess to score on a squeeze play, giving Pitt a 3-1 lead.
Senior Baron Stuart, who replaced Gilbertson, contributed two innings in relief, giving up a solo home run to Lincoln in the seventh.
Washington provided insurance with a solo shot of his own in the eighth, that ended up being the winning run.
Bradley loaded the bases against Hayden Summers with one out in the ninth, pulling within one on a sacrifice fly. Summers caught designated hitter Peter Hansen looking to secure the six out save.
The Panthers move to 3-2 on the season, and will face Bradley again on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 12pm. Billy Corcoran is expected to start.
