PUNTA GORDA, Fla. – The Moravian College baseball team fell to John Carroll University, 18-8, Tuesday afternoon in the Snowbird Classic. The Greyhounds defeated the Blue Streaks 8-5 in 11 innings yesterday.
Freshman pitcher Jimmy McCarthy would get the start on the mound for the Greyhounds. Senior outfielder Joe Veltri worked a walk for the first base runner of the game for the Blue Streaks. He was then worked over to third base before sophomore designated hitter David Lykens brought him home with a single to right field. McCarthy struck out the next batter to get out of the inning.
Freshman pitcher Ryan Donegan would get the nod for John Carroll in the bottom half of the first. Sophomore shortstop Colin Case started the inning with a lead-off home run down the left field line to tie the contest at one.
Freshman outfielder Cameron Leon started the bottom of the third with single to center field. Case followed with a double down the left field line before Donegan struck out the next batter. Sophomore outfielder Matt Hanson hit a triple to right field that scored Leon and Case. Classmate third baseman Ryan Luke drove a single through the left side to score one more run for the 4-1 lead.
Junior catcher Matthew Gutkes started the bottom of the fourth with a double to left center that hit the fence. He was then worked over to third before junior second baseman Daniel Seitzinger hit an infield single to score Gutkes. Hanson followed with a single that went over the first baseman's head while Seitzinger advanced to third base. Luke hit a stand-up triple to right centerfield. Junior outfielder Joseph Connell added an infield single that didn't go past the pitcher's mound to score Luke to put the Greyhounds up 8-1.
The Blue Streaks loaded the bases to start the top of the fifth off of two walks and a hit. Lykens then drove in two runs with a double to right center. Junior first baseman Jimmy Spagna laid down a sacrifice bunt to push one more run across the plate for John Carroll. Senior outfielder Ryan Konsler sent a ball to right center for a RBI triple to make the score 8-5. Senior pitcher Matthew Cordes would come on for Moravian and get a strike out before junior catcher Chet Lauer slapped a RBI single right past the third baseman to make the s core 8-6.
Sophomore second baseman Bobby Sabatino and Herringshaw started the top of the sixth with back-to-back singles. After a fly out, both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Spagna then hit a two-run triple to centerfield to tie the contest at eight. Cordes would get the final out of the inning with a strike out.
The Blue Streaks would take a 12-8 lead in the top of the seventh after scoring four runs, three of which came from a home run by Lykens. John Carroll went onto add six more runs in the next inning for an 18-8 victory.
McCarthy took the loss after allowing six runs in 4.1 innings pitched. Case went 3-for-5 with his first collegiate home run while Hanson went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, two runs and a triple. Luke had three RBIs off of three hits while Leon and freshman first baseman Charles Savite went 2-for-4 at the plate.
Earning the victory was freshman pitcher Aaron Lapaglia, who had 3.1 relief innings of scoreless ball while striking out three. Lykens led John Carroll after going 4-for-6 with seven RBIs, three runs and a home run. Spagna went 3-for-5 with four RBIs while Lauer and Sabatino each had two RBIs. Sabatino also had four runs scored on the day.
Moravian will take on Bluffton University on Thursday, March 7th in the Snowbird Classic. The contest is set for 11 a.m.
