BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (March 15, 2018)  – Junior Donny Gherardi went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs, but the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team fell to Birmingham-Southern College, 9-3, Thursday evening in the first-ever meeting between the programs.

Freshman Gannon Kenney-McGowan collected his first collegiate hit with a seventh-inning double for the Ducks, who dropped their third straight contest to fall to 4-7 on the year.

Will Toner had three hits and drove in four and Brian Williams scored three times for the Panthers, who improved to 8-9.

"Pitching-wise, we saw some very solid relief from Chandler Brierley, Eli Zuckerman, Will Korosec, Michael Frissora, Drew Hanke and Ryan Larsen," said head coach Kristaps Aldins. "Donny Gherardi swung the bat well all night and it was nice to see Gannon get his first collegiate hit on a deep double to centerfield."

Birmingham-Southern jumped on starter Quinn DiPasquale (1-2) in the first inning. Richie Missichia walked to lead off the inning but was promptly picked off by the right-hander. Williams singled and moved to third on Tyler Wise's double. DiPasquale caught Tyler Hamel looking for the second out of the inning. Will Evans was hit by a pitch to load the bases and Wise and Williams scored when Toner drove DiPasquale's 2-1 pitch into center to give the hosts a 2-0 lead. The Chelmsford, Massachusetts native rebounded to induce a flyout from Ross Anderson to limit the damage.

Birmingham-Southern tacked on a single run in the second on a home run off the bat of A.J. Hunt and then broke the game open with six runs in the fourth. DiPasquale finished the day allowing eight runs on nine hits in three innings. The hurler walked two and stuck out two.

The Ducks got on the board in the fourth. Junior Carlos Leon led off the frame with a pinch-hit single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. After consecutive groundouts, Gherardi drove an 0-2 offering into right to score Leon. The junior stole second but was stranded after a strikeout ended the inning.

The Ducks added two more runs in the sixth. Detweiler began the rally with a one-out single up the middle. Sophomore Patrick Rood singled and both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch. Gherardi collected his second hit of the game with a single up the middle, scoring both Detweiler and Rood. The Oradell, New Jersey native moved to second on a wild pitch, but did advance further when consecutive groundouts ended the inning. 

Andy Hammond (1-3) scattered two hits over three innings to earn the victory.

In relief of DiPasquale, three pitchers made their 2018 debuts for Stevens, including a pair making their first collegiate appearances. Freshmen Alex Smith and Eli Zuckerman paired with graduate student William Korosec to allow one run on hit over 3 1-3 innings in their first game action of the season, and careers in the case of Smith and Zuckerman. The trio combined for two strikeouts. On the evening, the Stevens bullpen allowed one run on two hits over five innings. 

Freshman Matthew Schmidt walked in his first collegiate at-bat. The Selden, New York native made his collegiate debut as a defensive replacement against Piedmont. 

Up Next: Friday's non-conference game against Emory University is up next on the Spring Break calendar. Stevens will play consecutive games at Chappell Park with a neutral-site game against Middlebury scheduled to close out the Spring Break schedule.

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