CORTLAND, NY - The Utica University baseball team and the Russell Sage College Gators met at Gutchess Sports Complex on Friday evening to open up Empire 8 play and did so in thrilling fashion. Utica took the game 10-7 in 11 innings to move to 1-0 in league action.
The game was played as Sage's home game.
Multiple Pioneers totaled two hits in the game in
John Longeretta (Oriskany, NY/Oriskany) (2-4),
John Son (Mellville, NY/Half Hollow Hills) (2-5),
Matthew Kanyuk (Mellville, NY/Hills East) (2-6),
Brendan May (McGraw, NY/McGraw) (2-6) and
Joe Battista (Gansevoort, NY/South Glens Falls) (2-4). Son led the team with four runs driven in followed by
Dom Fasolo (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) with two and one each by Longeretta and May.
On the mound, starting pitcher
Ryan Cardone (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) went six-plus strong innings allowing just two runs on seven hits while striking out five and walking three.
Dylan Sullivan (West Orange, NJ/Columbia) produced two scoreless innings in relief with two hits allowed and three strikeouts.
Brendan May (McGraw, NY/McGraw) picked up his first win of the season as well after tossing the 10th and 11th innings.
The Pioneers opened the game with a run in the top of the 1st inning.
Brendan May (McGraw, NY/McGraw) started the frame with a leadoff double to left field and was brought home two batters later by way of a
John Son (Mellville, NY/Half Hollow Hills) RBI groundout.
Sage responded with one of its own in the bottom half. After allowing back-to-back singles to start the half inning, starting pitcher
Ryan Cardone (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) settled in and retired the next two Gators. However, a two out single allowed the runner from second to come around and touch home to even the score 1-1.
Utica came right back in the top of the 2nd to retake the lead with a two out hit of its own by May, who singled home
John Longeretta (Oriskany, NY/Oriskany). On the same play,
Matthew Kanyuk (Mellville, NY/Hills East) was thrown out at home attempting to score.
Cardone ensured the slight Pioneer lead would stay intact with shutout innings in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th while an error by Sage in the top of the 4th allowed
Jack Bono (Frankfort, NY/Frankfort-Schuyler) to score for a 3-1 Utica lead.
The Gators got that run back in the bottom of the 5th on a two out triple however, that would be all as the Pioneers clinged to a 3-2 lead entering the 6th.
Moving to the 7th, Utica added a pair of insurance runs thanks to a two out double by Son to push the team's lead to 5-2. In Sage's half of the inning, Cardone exited the game for
Connor Ford (Swedesboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional) who kept the Gators off the board entering the 8th.
Utica went down in order in the top half of the 8th, proving to be costly as Sage wound up tying the score 5-5 in the bottom half. With nothing going for the Pioneers in the top of the 9th, Sage found itself 90 feet away from winning the game with runners on second and third with two outs in the bottom of the 9th. The freshman Sullivan stood strong, however, striking out the next batter he faced to force extra innings.
The Pioneers' two runs in the top of the 10th were matched by Sage in the bottom half as the game entered the 11th.
There, Utica separated itself from the Gators with a two-RBI single by Fasolo and a RBI walk worked by Longeretta to take a 10-7 lead into the bottom half.
In the Gators' half of the inning, May worked around a leadoff single by striking out the next three Sage batters to put the game to a close.
Utica (9-3, 1-0 Empire 8) and Sage will complete its series on Sunday with a doubleheader that will again be played at Gutchess Sports Complex. Game one is set to begin at 1 p.m.
