HOBOKEN, N.J. (March 23, 2019) – Senior
Donny Gherardi registered a walk-off two-run homerun in the first game of the day before the Stevens Institute of Technology shutout Elmira College in game two in an Empire 8 Conference doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Dobbelaar Field.
Senior
Danny Poidomani (1-1) earned his first win of the season in the Ducks 5-4 win in game one after pitching all seven innings and striking out seven batters. Classmate
Ryan Larsen (1-3) collected his first win oF the year in Stevens 17-0 shutout over the Soaring Eagles, while sophomore
Joseph Deitz was credited with the save. The Ducks improved to 5-9 overall and start conference play with a 2-0 record.
Elmira's Corey DeMauro (1-2) was handed the loss in game one after allowing four runs in the bottom of the seventh. Andy Reed fell to 0-2 on the mound after allowing nine runs in five innings in game two. The Soaring Eagles dropped to 2-9 on the year and 0-2 in the E8.
"Sweeping doubleheaders, especially in conference, is satisfying. And our guys showed big-time fight to battle back in game one," reflected head coach
Kristaps Aldins. "Finney,
Tom James and AJ all had clutch at-bats to set the stage. And then Donny walked it off in what was an incredible ending. In game two Larsen set the tone on the mound and our bats came alive. We look forward to putting together an even more complete effort tomorrow to close out this series."
Elmira took the lead in the top of the third inning of game one when Jansen Crossley hit an RBI single in the infield. The Ducks were able to tie it up in the bottom of the sixth after Gherardi scored on a groundout by sophomore
J.C. Hanley.
The Soaring Eagles answered in the top of the seventh when Jack Thomas scored on an error by Stevens before Mason Ryan hit and RBI single up the middle. Ryan then scored after stealing third and advancing home on a throwing error by the catcher.
In the bottom of the seventh, freshman
Ryan Finegan was hit by a pitch, allowing him to reach base prior to classmate
Tom James doubling down the left field line. Sophomore
Raymond Cortes III then pinch ran for the Murrieta, California native.
Junior
A.J. Falconite followed with a single up the middle to send home Finegan and Cortes, cutting the Ducks' deficit to one run. Freshman
Brett Mendez pinch ran for Falconite and was able to advance to third base on a wild pitch.
With two outs, Gherardi hit his walk-off two-run homer over the center field fence to give Stevens their first conference win of the season.
In game two, the Ducks collected a season-high 15 hits while registering five multi-run innings. Gherardi opened the scoring when he advanced home after senior
Carlos Leon reached on a fielder's choice. Classmate
Matt Branco followed with a sacrifice bunt that sent home junior
Patrick Rood.
After freshman
Sutton Dole scored on a fielding error by the third baseman, classmate
Chris Silos hit a ground-rule double that brought in his first two collegiate runs to give Stevens a 5-0 lead.
Branco registered his first double of the 2019 season in the bottom of the fourth. Senior
Matthew Pasko sent his classmate to third with a single to right field before graduate student
Tommy Baronner brought in both runners with his first double of the year. Dole closed out the three-run inning by sending Baronner home on a single.
In the bottom of the fifth, Leon singled on a bunt before he advanced to third base on a throwing error by the third baseman. Branco then registered his second RBI and second hit of the game with a single up the middle.
Following a two-run single from Rood in the sixth inning, the Ducks tallied six runs in the bottom of the seventh to cap off the eventful second game of the day.
Up Next: Baseball takes on the Soaring Eagles in a third game tomorrow, March 24 at 12 P.M. in the Birthplace of Baseball Classic.
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