UTICA, N.Y. (May 9, 2015) – Ithaca College used a five run seventh inning to defeat the Stevens Institute of Technology 12-4 in the Empire 8 Conference Championship Saturday.
 
The Bombers (20-14) started the scoring in the bottom of the first as Zach Pidgeon lofted a fly ball to left field to score John Stanley for a sacrifice fly. The Ducks (29-14) took the lead back in the third when sophomore Zeph Walters belted a two-run home run to score sophomore Michael Mule'. Pidgeon notched another RBI as he drove in a run in the fourth with a single, and Zach Cole followed him up with a sac-fly to center.
 
Mule' brought Stevens even with an RBI double to left center, and after Walters reached on an error, Mule' came home to give them a 4-3 advantage. Josh Savacool singled up the middle which scored Domenic Boresta to once again even the contest in the bottom of the fifth. The game remained knotted at four until the seventh inning when Ithaca broke the game open.
 
Cooper Belyea led off the seventh with a walk, and after a pair of sacrifice bunts, moved over to third. The Bombers then sprayed five straight singles to score five runs, with Stephen Yanchus, Pidgeon, Cole, Christian Brown and Matt Connolly all knocking in runs.
 
In the eighth, the No. 1 seeded Bombers put three more on the board, as Savacool and Cole had RBI singles and Brian Burns recorded a sac-fly to make the score 12-4 in favor of Ithaca. Stevens put the first two men on in the top of the ninth, but Jimmy Wagner ended the comeback hopes by retiring the next three hitters.
 
Walters went 4-for-5 with two runs batted in while Mule' and senior Brian Hennelly each had a pair of hits. The team as a whole pounded out 10 hits.
 
Savacool, Stanley, Trevor Thompson, Pidgeon, Cole and Brown each had two hits while Cole drove in three runs.
 
The Ducks will find out late tomorrow night if they will receive a bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament which begins next week.

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