By Anthony DiCocco
Only six local teams were in action on Friday. Let’s see how the collegiate action unfolded.
Division I:
UNCW 2, Stony Brook 4
With a chance to claim a series win, the Seawolves drew first blood on Friday. After leading off the bottom of the second inning with a walk, Nick Dromboski stole second base and made it all the way to third on an errand throw by Josh Martinez. From there, Scott Gell drove him in with a sacrifice fly.
During the following inning, JP Pennella picked up a run batted in (RBI) with a single against Hunter Colagrande to knot the game at 1-1.
However, Stony Brook’s bats responded in a big way in the bottom of the third. With runners at the corners and two outs, Jack Scheri yanked an RBI single into left field to make it 2-1. Immediately after, Dromboski took a Cooper Allen pitch and split the right-center field gap to plate two more runs.
Colagrande cruised until the seventh inning, when he surrendered a double and single to start the frame. With a pair of runners on, Aidan Colagrande entered in relief and was greeted with a sacrifice fly by Pennella before getting Kevin Jones to ground into a double play to end the inning.
From there, Colagrande worked two perfect innings to earn a nine-out save.
Both Colagrandes were masterful on the bump. In his start, Hunter went six innings and allowed two runs on eight hits, no walks and two hit-by-pitches with nine strikeouts. Aidan did not allow a baserunner in his three scoreless frames while punching out two Seahawks.
Allen surrendered four runs (three earned) on seven hits, four walks and five strikeouts across six frames. From the bullpen, Mason Ruh punched out three batters without allowing a hit over two innings.
Dromboski led the Seawolves with two RBIs on his double and walked twice. Gell and Scheri each drove in a run as well.
Pennella plated both of UNCW’s runs.
Stony Brook will aim to complete the sweep on Saturday. First pitch is set for 11 a.m.
Hofstra 9, Towson 6
While up 2-0 with their ace on the mound, the Pride fell behind in the fourth inning. After getting two quick outs, Carlos Martinez allowed a pair of Tigers to reach base before Nich Francuzenko crushed a three-run homer to right field to put Towson in front 3-2.
However, Hofstra pounced on the Tigers’ bullpen in the sixth. With Matt Lynch toeing the rubber, Gabriel Melara singled home a run. Tyler Castratato followed with a single of his own, and after the duo pulled off a double steal, George Holt sent a sacrifice fly to center field before Nick Biddle plated another run with an RBI single to make it 5-3.
In the top of the eighth inning, Melara belted his second solo homer of the game, but Towson stormed back to tie the game at 6-6 in the bottom half. Following a leadoff single, Nick LoBello tripled to score a run two batters later.
Martinez was pulled in favor of Maddon McArthur, who hurled a wild pitch that allowed LoBello to score before coughing up a game-tying bomb to Brian Heckelman.
Nonetheless, the Pride erupted for three runs of their own in the ninth to deadlock the series. With two runners on, Melara deposited a single into right field to put Hofstra ahead 7-6.
Joey Tuttoilmondo was not out of the woods there. After getting the second out of the inning, the right-hander threw consecutive wild pitches to allow a pair of additional runs to score, giving the Pride some extra insurance.
Brayden Gregg entered in the ninth with hopes of securing the save and was able to do so, as he induced a double play after a leadoff walk before getting a popout to end it.
Melara had a monster day for the Pride, going 4-for-5 with two homers, three RBIs, three runs scored and a steal. Tyler Cox, Holt and Biddle all drove in a run apiece.
Despite allowing five runs on six runs and three free passes, Martinez battled through it and went 7 ⅓ innings while stirking out seven Tigers.
Before the Tigers’ bullpen imploded, Aden Knowles delivered a solid start for Towson, as he surrendered two runs on five hits while striking out two batters and walking none.
The two sides will begin their rubber match on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Le Moyne 12, LIU 5
The Dolphins made sure that Friday’s game was over just as it started. After Isaac Brozon took Justin DeCastro deep in the first inning, Jack Cannon followed with a single before Adam Sullivan clubbed a two-run homer to make it 3-0.
In the top of the second inning, Paulie Goodness and Brozon traded places with back-to-back doubles before Cannon crushed a two-run shot to extend Le Moyne’s lead to 6-0.
DeCastro continued to struggle in the fourth. The Dolphins loaded the bases with no one out, prompting Lawrence Elinson to take the hill in relief. Elinson did not fare much better, as he plunked Robert Wegrzyn to force in a run before Mike Whelehan notched a sacrifice fly.
During garbage time, Nick Matson cracked a grand slam and Sam Finarelli tallied his first collegiate home run, but the Dolphins plated four runs of their own in the meantime to maintain the blowout win.
Sullivan, Brozon and Cannon all tallied three hits, with Sullivan racking up three RBIs and Brozon and Cannon adding two each. Goodness, Wegrzyn, Whelehan and Nick Kriegelstein all drove in a run apiece.
Across three-plus innings, DeCastro allowed eight runs on 10 knocks, a walk and three hit-by-pitches.
On the other side, Luke Vanmarter allowed four runs — which all came on the grand slam — on five hits, four walks and six punch outs. Max Danaher earned a four-inning save for Le Moyne, pitching to the tune of one run on a hit, two walks, two hit batsmen and two strikeouts.
After dropping the first two games of the series, the Sharks will look to salvage the three-game set by winning Saturday’s finale at noon.
Fordham 3, Dayton 5
With the Flyers up 1-0, the Rams pulled ahead 2-1 in the top of the fourth inning. Soon after a leadoff single, Mason Dean doubled off of Sawyer Jensen, setting the stage for Tommy Markey to deliver a two-RBI single.
Nonetheless, Dayton responded immediately before taking over. To lead off the bottom of the fourth, Colin Lynch blasted a homer to tie the game. During the following inning, Aiden Heberlie notched a one-out single before Grayson Carpenter sent a go-ahead, two-run bomb over the left-center field wall to make it 4-2.
With Beau Elson still on the bump in the sixth, Bobby Stang reached on a fielding error by Matt Dieguez and eventually made it to third base. From there, Dyrenson Wouters singled him home by dropping down a bunt.
With Austin McNabb in to pitch for the Flyers, Tommy McAndrews singled a run home to make it 5-3 in the ninth. Anthony Grabau followed with another single to get the tying run to the plate, but McNabb got pinch hitter Caden Young to hit into a fielder’s choice to close the game out.
Markey led Fordham with two RBIs while Grabau’s two knocks were the most on the Rams. McAndrews plated the team’s only other run.
For the Flyers, Carpenter plated a pair of runs while Lynch, Wouters and Danny MacDougall all picked up an RBI each. Lynch and Heberlie both recorded multi-hit games.
Through 5 ⅔ innings, Elson coughed up five runs (three earned) on five hits and two walks while striking out eight batters. In relief, Declan Cawley went 2 ⅓ scoreless frames, allowing one hit and two walks while tallying four strikeouts.
Jensen surrendered two runs on four hits, three walks, four hit-by-pitches and eight strikeouts over six frames. McNabb went three innings to secure the save, pitching to one run on two hits, no walks, a hit-by-pitch and two punch outs.
The Rams will look to even the series during Saturday’s game, which is set for 11 a.m.
Division II:
Game 1: Franklin Pierce 0, Adelphi 13
Game 2: Franklin Pierce 5, Adelphi 10 F/7
In game one, Adelphi rode an explosive first inning to a victory. The Panthers immediately loaded the bases against Matt Lee, allowing Albert Ramos to drive in a run with an infield second. On that same play, Ivan Arias’ throw went awry to plate an additional run.
Giancarlo Rengifo followed with a sacrifice fly before Evan Carway and Erick Duignan strung together consecutive RBI knocks. After a hit-by-pitch reloaded the bases, Zach DeMilt drove in two more runs with a single before Johnny Catuosco plated another with a base hit.
To cap off the eight-run frame and chase Lee from the game, Bryan McCleary sent an RBI double into left field.
During the second inning, Carway took Owen King deep for a two-run shot. Later in the contest, Anthony Rigogliosi plated a pair with a double and Catuosco notched one more RBI with a groundout.
In the second half, Adelphi’s bats won the game early once again. With two runners in scoring position and two outs, Ramos sent a ball toward Jacob Roque, but Roque committed an error on the play to score both runners.
Rafael Rodriguez belted a solo homer in the top of the second to cut Franklin Pierce’s deficit in half, but the Panthers answered with five of their own in the bottom of the inning. Adelphi juiced the bases with no one out, leading to DeMilt earning a free pass to force a run home.
Johnny Ruggiero Jr. then allowed a two-RBI single off Catuosco before Michael Robinson singled another run in. During the ensuing at-bat, Ramos tallied a sacrifice fly.
The Ravens responded with three runs in the third, but the Panthers added three insurance runs of their own in the fifth to make it a wash. Roque picked up an RBI single in the ninth, but it was far too little, too late.
During the opener, John Carver diced up the Ravens, twirling seven shutout innings of one-hit baseball while striking out 12 and walking three. In game two, Billy Kind allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits, no walks, two hit batsmen and two strikeouts. Colin Richardson pitched three scoreless innings in relief, allowing just one hit and no walks with a punch out.
The Panthers totaled 22 hits across both games. Catuosco notched a team-high five RBIs with DeMilt closely trailing with four. Rigogliosi accumulated three runs batted in while Ramos and Carway totaled two apiece. Robinson, Rengifo, Duignan and McCleary all picked up one.
Lee recorded just two outs in his start while allowing eight runs on seven hits, a walk and two hit batsmen. Ruggiero Jr. went 4 ⅓ frames to the tune of 10 runs (eight earned), six hits, five walks, two hit-by-pitches and three strikeouts.
Roque led the Ravens with two RBIs while Rodriguez, Shane Starr and Curt Boyd all notched one each.
The Panthers will wrap up their four-game series with the Ravens with a doubleheader on Saturday, which will begin at noon.
Game 1: D’Youville 4, Queens 6
Game 2: D’Youville 9, Queens 1 F/7
With the score sitting at 1-0, the Knights began to separate themselves from the Saints in the third inning. After loading the bases with two away, Ty Graczyk threw a wild pitch to plate a run. Immediately after, Thomas McElwee sent a two-RBI single into right field, chasing Graczyk from the game.
Following an error that extended the inning, Tommy Pasqua took a Mihir Manerikar and doubled to center field to make it 5-0.
In the fifth, D’Youville capitalized on Queens errors to get back in the game. With the bases loaded, Joshua Angley and Pasqua committed errors on the same play to allow all three runners to cross the plate. During the next at-bat, Colby Wilson singled a run home off of Michael Vilardi.
Aided by a McElwee solo shot in the eighth to pad the lead, Peter Nenadich III entered in relief and stranded six baserunners over four scoreless stanzas to lock down the win.
Game two was a different story, as the Saints thumped Queens. After a quiet start, D’Youville had its first two batters reach to begin the fourth, paving the way for Wilson to single in a run.
Garett Wilson was plunked during the ensuing at-bat to load the bases. From there, Cooper Cefaratti picked up an RBI with a single and another run came around to score on the play via a Pasqua error. Two batters later, Jake Hollins drove in the fourth run of the frame on a groundout.
McElwee singled a run home in the bottom half of the frame to get the Knights on the board, but the Saints broke the matchup wide open in the sixth. Colby Wilson led off the frame with a homer, and following a two-out walk, Jake Hollins doubled in a run.
Christopher Naronis walked another batter immediately after, prompting Queens to turn to Johnny Dezago, who started his day by issuing a free pass. With three ducks on the pond, Blaise Kolbert cleared the bases with a double to cap off a five-run inning.
From the pen, Billy Morris worked two perfect innings with three punch outs for the Saints, allowing his team to cruise to the win.
Graczyk allowed five runs on five hits, three walks and four strikeouts across 2 ⅔ innings. Over 5 ⅓ innings in relief, Manerikar punched out three Knights while allowing a run on five knocks. In game two, Jakob Denall struck out eight batters, walked one and hit two while allowing a run on four hits over five innings.
In the opener, Vilardi allowed four unearned runs on seven hits, two walks and six strikeouts. Nenadich III did not surrender a run and struck out three batters en route to a 12-out save. Naronis coughed up eight runs on seven hits, three walks, a hit batsmen and three strikeouts.
Colby Wilson and Kolbert totaled five hits while driving in three and one run, respectively. Cefaratti and Hollins notched two RBIs each while Morris added one.
McElwee registered four hits and four RBIs while Pasqua and Connor Waiting each drove in a run.
Both squads will vie for a series victory on Saturday with a doubleheader. The opener is slated to start at noon.
Division III:
St. John Fisher 11, St. Joseph’s 4
The Cardinals immediately jumped out to an early lead in this one. After a pair of hit batsmen and steals combined to put a pair of runners in scoring position, Jackson Frey notched a two-RBI single off Riley Morris in the top of the first inning.
During the second, Noah Pohrte sent a solo homer to left field. After Andrew Amarando got a run back with an RBI double in the bottom of the frame, Pohrte stepped up to the plate in the top of the fourth and cracked a two-run homer to make it 5-1.
In the bottom of the fourth, Alex Johnston tallied an RBI double, and two innings later, he struck again to make it 5-3. From there, Johnston stole third while Dom Crema swiped home to pull the Golden Eagles within a run.
However, the Cardinals pulled away in the seventh. With two runners on against Ryan Barlow, Jack Griffin tripled to make it 7-4 before Mario Cubello delivered a two-out, RBI single.
In the ninth, Cubello and Scott Sleurs each notched RBI triples of their own before Pohrte capped off the game’s scoring with a run-scoring single.
Johnston and Amarando both went 2-for-4, with Johnston notching a pair of RBI doubles while Amarando had one.
Pohrte went 3-for-5 with two homers, four RBIs and two runs scored. Cubello, Frey and Griffin all plated two runs while Sleurs added one. Sleurs, Cubello and Griffin all legged out triples as well.
Colin Barry got the start for St. John Fisher and went three innings with four strikeouts while allowing a run on two hits and two walks.
Morris coughed up five runs on five hits, four hit-by-pitches and a punch out across 3 ⅓ innings.
The Golden Eagles will look to earn a series split on Saturday with an 11 a.m. start.