FINAL: VCU 4 (10-9), East Carolina 3 (15-7)

LOCATION: Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium – Greenville, N.C.

VCU STARTERS: Farrar (CF), Bunn (LF), Davis (3B), Machin (SS), Carpenter (1B), Rabat (DH), Acker (RF), Haymaker (C), Berezo (2B), Howie (SP).

EAST CAROLINA STARTERS: Lamm (RF), Yorgen (2B), Harman (DH), Lowery (LF), Tyler (1B), Brooks (CF), Watkins (C), Morgan (SS), Mims (3B), Kruczynski (SP)

THE BASICS: VCU grabbed its 10th win of the season on Friday night with a 4-3 victory over East Carolina down in Greenville. Matt Lees earned his third win of the season with 2.1 spotless innings out of the bullpen to relieve starter JoJo Howie and Alex Gransback drove in the game-winning run in the top of the ninth when he drove in Cody Acker. 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Pirates came into tonight's game as the third-best hitting team in the nation, but it was the Rams who got on the board first. James Bunn smacked a ball into the right field corner that ended up being a triple and he would score when the next guy up, Matt Davis, drove him in on a sacrifice fly.
• After mowing through the ECU lineup the first time around, JoJo Howie experienced a little adversity in the bottom of the fourth. Two straight base hits started off the inning and then, with two outs, the Pirates tied the game up at 1-1 with an RBI single into centerfield.
• Davis would put his team back ahead in the top of the sixth with a solo home run to left field, his second of the season. In the next at-bat Vimael Machin singled into centerfield, thereby extending his hitting streak to eight games- a season high for VCU.
• Trouble for the Rams came again in the bottom half of the frame when East Carolina's strong middle of the order rattled off three straight hits, a stretch that culminated in a two-run single up the middle to give the Pirates a 3-2 lead, their first lead of the night. VCU would get one of those runs back in the top of the seventh on a fielder's choice to second base that allowed a runner to score.
• VCU took the lead back in the top of the ninth when pinch-hitter Alex Gransback slapped a grounder to second base and, even with the infield in, Cody Acker scored on the play to give the Rams a 4-3 lead. Acker's triple to deep right field led off the top of the ninth. 
• Heading into the bottom of the ninth with a one-run lead, Daniel Concepcion came in a shut down the Pirates to help preserve a 4-3 win for the Rams. VCU held ECU to seven hits on the night, just the fifth time a team has done that to the Pirates in 22 games this season.
  
   

UP NEXT: VCU's will come back tomorrow to face the Pirates at 4:00.