Utica, NY – The Utica College baseball team is scheduled to host a chunk of upcoming games this weekend. The Pioneers will host Oneonta at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, to makeup an earlier postponement, before playing St. John Fisher on Saturday and Sunday for a three-game Empire 8 Conference series. Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 1 p.m., while Sunday's contest is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start.
Senior Day: This Saturday is Senior Day for the Pioneers as the team will recognize all 13 seniors who are playing in the final season of their collegiate careers. The list of seniors is as follows:
Brett Sarnowski (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville),
Ben Julian (Wynantskill, NY/Troy),
Gavin McCann (Highland, NY/Highland),
Kolbie Glionna (Hagaman, NY/Amsterdam),
Tom Carrigan (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna),
John Franchi (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee),
Alex Rocci (Utica, NY/Notre Dame),
Adam Nell (Vernon, NY/VVS),
Eric Sahagian (Schenectady, NY/Guilderland),
Ryan Keefe (Ballston, NY/Ballston Spa),
Jake Ryan (Kingston, NY/Kingston),
Justin Shabman (Cortlandt Manor, NY/Kennedy Catholic), and
Zachary Schellenger (Schenectady, NY/Schenectady). Prior to game one of the doubleheader each senior will be joined by their loved ones during the pre-game Senior Day ceremony.
Last Time Out: UC traveled to take on #6 SUNY Cortland earlier in the week, taking the 8-3 loss. The second baseman,
Ryan Palmer (Verona, NY/VVS), had a good day at the plate, batting 3-for-5. Palmer also scored a run, while teammate
Christian Tiffin (Sherrill, NY/VVS) went 1-for-3 with one RBI off a sacrifice fly. Senior pitcher
Brett Sarnowski (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) threw for two innings and was given the losing decision to make his season record now 1-1. The Pioneers dropped to 11-10 overall on the year after the five-run loss.
Conference Standings: With an in-conference record of 4-5 thus far, UC is very much a threat to make a run to qualify for the Empire 8 Tournament. The team is currently in fifth place in the E8 standings and need to be in the top four to play in the tournament beginning on May 10th. The full conference standings are as follows: 1. Stevens (11-3 E8), 2. Ithaca (7-5 E8), 3. St. John Fisher (6-3 E8), 4. Houghton (4-6 E8), 5. Utica (4-5 E8), 6. Canton (2-5 E8), 7. Elmira (2-9 E8).
Hitting Leaders: Christian Tiffin (Sherrill, NY/VVS),
Ryan Palmer (Verona, NY/VVS), and
Matthew Fitzgerald (Clinton, NY/Notre Dame) continue to hold their spots within the top five hitters in the Empire 8. Tiffin is still leading the E8 with a batting average of .400 in his strong junior season. Palmer is third in the conference hitting at a rate of .384, while Fitzgerald's batting average is tied for fourth at .382. Palmer even leads UC with 17 RBI's, just one ahead of
Tim Quinlan (Monroe, CT/Masuck) (16 RBI's) who leads the team with three home runs on the season.
The Pitching Staff: With a record of 4-1, sophomore pitcher
Griffin Baur (New York Mills, NY/New York Mills) leads Utica in wins, innings pitched, and strikeouts. Baur's 29 strikeouts in 29.2 innings on the mound go with his ERA of 4.85. Senior
Alex Rocci (Utica, NY/Notre Dame) is 3-2 on the year and has 11 strikeouts.
Justin Shabman (Cortlandt Manor, NY/Kennedy Catholic) leads the pitching staff with two saves, and
Brett Sarnowski (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) has struck out 22 batters in 20.2 innings of work. Shabman continues to lead Utica with an ERA of 2.95.
Scouting Oneonta: The Oneonta Red Dragons are sitting at 9-17 overall on the season. The team is looking to extend its winning-streak to three games as it recently won both games of a doubleheader against Fredonia. Dalton Beatty leads Oneonta with a .366 batting average and 15 RBI's. Brandon LaVenture is batting .283 and has hit a team-high four homers this year. Takoda Sitar (2-4) leads the Red Dragon pitching staff with 48 strikeouts during his 38.2 innings of work on the hill. Nicholas Ponesse has earned an ERA of 3.54 in his team-leading 40.2 innings pitched.
Scouting Fisher: The Cardinals are 17-9 overall and 6-3 in E8 competition heading into the three-game series this weekend. St. John Fisher beat up on Canton with a 25-4 win after falling in both doubleheader games to Stevens last week. Thomas Pasquale owns the top batting average on the team, with a mark of .382. Teammate Scott Eisenmenger is hitting .347 on the season and leads Fisher with seven homers and 33 RBI's. Anthony Brophy (3-2) has thrown three complete games this year on his way to striking out 37 batters in 48.1 innings pitched. Brophy also owns an ERA of 2.05, while teammate Tim Geissel (4-1) has recorded 24 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.90.
Looking Ahead: After a full weekend of games the Pioneers prepare for a non-conference doubleheader with cross-town rival SUNY Poly. The two-game set will begin at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 25th.
