BOX SCORE

Reading, Pa. (Mar. 16, 2012) - The Alvernia University (8-5-1, 1-0) offense found its groove posting a 10-run third inning en route to a 16-3 win over Arcadia University (4-9, 0-1) in the Commonwealth Conference baseball opener for both schools Friday afternoon at Angelica Park.

Friday was the first of two planned Armed Forces Days honoring current and former military members.  Robert Lutz and Paul O'Mara, fathers of Alvernia head coach Yogi Lutz and assistant coach John O'Mara, threw out first pitches before Friday's game.

Robert Lutz joined the Marine Corp in April 1952.  He served in the Korean War for 14 months, was in the Mediterranean for six months and in Hanvana, Cuba, for three months.  His last three months were served on M.P. Duty upon being Honorably Discharged as a Sgt. in the United States Marine Corp.

Paul O'Mara went to boot camp in San Diego, California, in October 1963.  In 1964, he went to the EMA School in San Diego before being sent to Seattle, Washington, to go on board the USS Waccamow AO-109--the first jumbo tanker in the US Navy.  In 1965, O'Mara and the ship went through the Panama Canal to the Gulf to join the fleet in the Cuban Blockade and Dominican Evacuation during the Cuban Missile Crisis.  O'Mara also took part in two missions to recover Apollo Space Capsules including the recovery of John Glenn as part of the medical cruise with the 6th fleet.

Both fathers threw ceremonial first pitches with their sons catching before the start of the game.

Alvernia sophomore Mike Weinhold (Robersonia, Pa./Conrad Weiser) set an early tone for the Crusaders striking out the side in the first and the offense gave him an early lead with a run in the home half.  Leon Stimpson (Philadelphia, Pa./Malvern Prep) and Chris Ray (Exton, Pa./Henderson) walked and Chris Gehris (Sinking Spring, Pa./Holy Name) singled to load the bases.  Sophomore Matt Patterson (Hamilton, N.J./Nottingham) followed with a fly ball to center that scored Stimpson, but the Crusaders weren't able to tack on any more runs.

They did more than tack on in the third, sending 14 batters to the plate and scoring 10 runs on eight base hits and two hit batters.  Two batters, Ray and Richie Riccardi (Manalapan, N.J./Manalapan), had two hits apiece in the inning.  At one point six straight batters came through with an RBI totalling two singles, two doubles, a triple, and a hit batter with the bases loaded.  Riccardi singled in a run in both his first and second at-bat of the inning.

Arcadia got on the board in the fifth--Weinhold's final inning of work--on two walks and a single.  Weinhold's final line was one run on five hits with three walks and six strikeouts.

The Crusaders tacked on two more runs in the seventh and three in the eighth.

Six batters had multi-hit games for the Crusaders including Patterson who went 3-for-6 with four RBIs.  Junior catcher Kevin Bailey (Fallston, Md./Fallston) went 3-for-4 and 12 different players crossed the plate for the Crusaders.

Alvernia will head to Arcadia Saturday for a doubleheader to complete the three-game series.  The Crusaders will host Armed Service Days on its final Friday conference series openers against Elizabethtown on April 20.

Alvernia 16, Arcadia 3