Feb. 21, 2010

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DURHAM, N.C. - Navy starter Zach Sipe (So./Huffman, Texas) did not allow a run over six innings to lead the Midshipmen to a 9-2 victory over host North Carolina Central in the final day of the Eagle Baseball Classic at Durham Athletic Park on Sunday afternoon.

The Midshipmen improved to 3-0 on the year, their best start since the 1981 Mids won their first-eight games of the season. The Eagles dropped to 0-3 on the young campaign.

Sipe scattered four hits and one unearned run over six frames with no walks and four strikeouts to earn the win. He needed only 76 pitches and faced the minimum number of batters over his final-four innings, which included a span of 10-straight outs.

"For this being his first time outside this spring, his command of the strike zone was pretty good," stated Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "We know he has the stuff and when the command is there, he can be like this.

This was the first time was economical with his pitch count. He gave us six good innings with only 76 pitches. He's shown in the past that he can be a high pitch count guy, so the goal was to reduce his number and he did a good job."

After the host Eagles plated an unearned run in the first, Navy immediately responded with two runs in the second, three in the third and three in the fourth to pull away. In the second, Nick Driscoll (Jr./Riverview, Fla.) drew a bases-loaded walk and Mike Guadagnini (Jr./Virginia Beach, Va.) knocked in a run on a fielder's choice to give the guests the lead.

The Midshipmen tacked on in the third with a towering, three-run shot over the left-field fence by Steven Soares (Sr./Coral Springs, Fla.). One inning later, Michael Speciale (Sr./Pearland, Texas) blasted a three-run shot onto the roof of the warehouse beyond the fence in deep right-centerfield.

"Both Steven's and Michael's home runs were the biggest hits of the game," said Kostacopoulos. "Steve's shot stretched it out from a 2-1 game to a 5-1 game. Whenever you get two three-run home runs in one game, it's going to help the offense."

Navy tallied 10 hits on the day, with eight different Mids recording a base knock. Jonathan Berkowitz (Sr./Parkland, Fla.) went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a walk, while Kendall Bolt (Sr./Stockton, Calif.) finished 2-for-3 with a double and a hit by pitch.

The Midshipmen will return to action on Wednesday when they hold their home opener against Maryland Eastern Shore at 2 p.m. Admission is free for all games at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium and live stats will be available via GameTracker on www.NavySports.com(.)

DIAMOND NOTES:
- Sunday's meeting between Navy and North Carolina Central was the first on the baseball diamond.
- Navy's pitching staff has allowed only seven runs on 16 hits on the year ...the seven runs yielded are the fewest over the first-three games of a year since the 1999 squad allowed six runs within the same span.
- Navy's 29 runs scored over its first-three games are the most since it plated 34 runs in its first-three contests of 2005.
- Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos has directed the Midshipmen to a 23-8-2 record in the month of February since taking over the reigns in 2006.
- Starter Zach Sipe's performance on Sunday marked the first time in his career that he did not allow a walk or an earned run in an outing ... he earned the win in his first start of the season for the second-straight year, as he claimed the win last spring in his collegiate debut against Pittsburgh.
- Sunday marked the second-straight game in which Navy's starters were efficient in quality-start efforts ... today, Zach Sipe needed only 76 pitches to get through six innings ... yesterday, Wes Olson totaled 83 pitches en route to seven sparkling innings against Iona.
- Michael Speciale's three-run shot in the fourth inning was his second long ball of the year and 17th of his career, which moved him into a tie for third place on the all-time list with Andy Loferski (1981-83) ... both of his home runs this spring have gone opposite field.
- Steven Soares's three-run blast in the third inning was his 10th home run of his career, which moved him into a tie for 12th place on the all-time list with Matt Smith (1994-97) and Bruce Buck (1974-77).
- Leadoff hitter Mike Guadagnini extended his hitting streak to 18 games, dating back to last spring ... during this span, he's hitting .432 (35-for-81) with 27 runs scored.