SUNY Brockport used a walkoff in the first game, and a strong offensive start combined with good pitching in the second game to sweep the St. Lawrence Saints baseball team in a doubleheader in Auburndale, Fla. Saturday.
John Gannon was 2-for-4 for the day and drove in a run. Outfielder
Brett Federico went 3-for-6 and also contributed an RBI while
Willie Landman had three hits in the first game and
Timothy Connor homered.
Michael Hutchins tossed six and one-thirds' innings in the first game surrendering zero earned runs and striking out five.
Liam Hickey and
Jared Brenner each pitched a shutout inning in the second game coming in relief.
Brockport improves to 5-3 on the year, while St. Lawrence falls to 1-3.
Game 1: St. Lawrence 5, Brockport 6
Hutchins got the nod as starter for the second time this season and he received some run support from the Scarlet and Brown offense before he had a chance to take the mound.
Connor got the scoring started in the first inning as the junior first baseman cranked a solo home run and the Saints saw themselves leading 1-0 after the second batter of the game.
Brockport tied the game at one, then in the top of the fourth, St. Lawrence got their one-run lead back. Three singles by Federico, Landman, and the RBI single going to Gannon got the score back to 2-1 in favor of the Saints.
The bottom of the fifth saw the Saints extending the lead further, with John Donnellen drawing an RBI walk followed by a single by
Stephen Colangelo to boost the lead to 4-1.
Heading into the bottom of the seventh, St. Lawrence found the scoreboard once again. With runners on the corners,
Jackson Brinker was able to drive home a run on a fielder's choice to give the Saints a 5-1 lead heading into the final three outs for the Golden Eagles.
Hutchins, going for the complete game, took the mound in the seventh. The junior from Norton, Mass. got the first out but gave up a single to the next batter. Now turning to the bullpen, the Saints got the second out of the inning but several walks and hits led to their lead slimming down to 5-3, the Saints ultimately fell on a walk-off three-run home run.
Game 2: St. Lawrence 1, Brockport 7
Both teams threatened in the first. Brockport with a walk and followed by a single, St. Lawrence with back-to-back singles by Federico and Connor, although neither team was able to convert with runners in scoring position.
Brockport opened the second inning with a leadoff triple. After a walk, hit by pitch, and a single, the leadoff base runner scored. Following this, Saints starting pitcher
Michael Watson allowed a walk to load up the bases but was able to get out of the jam via a ground ball, limiting the damage. In the third, a single, error, and three-run home run ballooned the Golden Eagles' lead to 4-0. They then made it 6-0 in the fourth, via three singles, a walk, and a hit by pitch.
The Saints offense had one hit between the second and sixth innings, that being a single from Noah Buldoc in the fourth.
The Saints got their first run on the board in the bottom of the seventh when the game was now 7-0 in favor of the Golden Bears.
Jack Finnegan led off the inning with a double and then second baseman Eoin Morrisey drove him in with an RBI single. The Saints continued to threaten with a
Daniel Verrastro single immediately following the Morrisey base hit but that was all the Saints could muster to end the game.
Next up:
The Saints return to action Sunday as they take on Worcester State in another doubleheader, with the first game starting at 9 a.m.
