TROY, NY – Utica baseball lept headfirst into conference play on Wednesday afternoon, traveling to Troy to take on a tough Russell Sage team that was receiving votes in the ABCA Division III Top 25 poll heading into the contest. In the midweek matchup, the Pioneers took an early lead, but eventually gave in to the Gators' offensive pressure, falling by a score of 11-4. 

The orange and blue showed early life at the plate, stringing together quality at-bats against a Sage team that entered the contest with a 15-3 record.

After falling behind 1-0 in the first inning, the Pioneers responded in the second. Taking advantage of a Sage error and using aggressive baserunning to get back into the matchup. Jacob Scalise (Utica, NY/Whitesboro) delivered an RBI single before Kody Czternastek (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) followed with a run-scoring hit to give Utica a 2-1 lead. Czternastek, who has been a consistent table-setter all season, finished with two hits and an RBI in the contest.

The Pioneers continued to push in the third inning. Ty Montrose (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) singled, and reigning Empire 8 Rookie of the Week Matthew Paolucci (Toronto, Ontario/Silverthorn Collegiate Institute)—fresh off a dominant four-RBI performance in game two against Elmira—drove him in with a double. Luca Logan (Bayonne, NJ/St. Peters Prep) followed with an RBI single, and a sacrifice fly from Lance Berger (Lindenhurst, NY/Saint Anthony's) extended the Utica lead to 4-2.

However, Sage quickly answered. The home team capitalized on walks, stolen bases, and a key Utica error to plate three runs in the third inning, reclaiming a 5-4 advantage. That momentum carried into the fourth, where the Gators broke the game open with four additional runs, highlighted by a two-RBI double.

On the mound, Garrett Greaney (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) got the start for Utica, going three innings while allowing seven runs (five earned) and striking out two. Tyler Brown (Sayville, NY/Sayville High School) provided length out of the bullpen, tossing 4.2 innings, and Brendan Berry (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) finished the final out of the eighth.

Offensively, the Pioneers collected nine hits, with Scalise and Czternastek each recording multi-hit performances. Paolucci added an extra-base hit and scored twice, continuing his strong stretch at the plate, while Bryant Pereira (Woodbridge, NJ/Woodbridge) chipped in with two hits in relief duty in right field.

Despite the early offensive production, Utica was held scoreless over the final six innings as Sage's bullpen settled in and shut down the Pioneer bats.

The Pioneers moved to 10-7 on the season and will look to bounce back as they return to conference play later this weekend, facing Alfred University in a three-game set beginning this Friday up at the newly constructed Saxon Hill.