3/31/22
 
BRANCHBURG, NJ – Lackawanna College hit early and often, racking up 20+ runs in both of their games to take a sweep over Raritan Valley CC in their Region XIX doubleheader opener, 21-3 and 27-9, on Thursday afternoon in New Jersey. The Falcons' combined 48 runs are the most they've scored in two games, and in one complete day, while the 27 runs they scored against Raritan in game two are the most runs they've scored since a 28-0 win over Valley Forge Military on April 6^th, 2015.  The Falcons combined for 41 hits over both games, including 18 extra base hits. Lackawanna hit eight homers across both games against the Lions.
 
Quinn Hanafin went 6-for-9 in both games, driving in nine runs and scoring six runs of his own. Cody Fleischer contributed, going 6-for-11 in both games, driving in four runs and scoring six, while Daniel Keenan went 6-for-12 with four RBIs and six runs scored, including hitting two triples. Eli Riley also had a great day, going 5-for-7 with five RBIs and six runs scored for the Falcons.
 
Game One Recap: Lackawanna College 21 – 3 Raritan Valley CC
After trailing 1-0 after the first inning, the Falcon offense came alive, scoring 12 runs over their next three innings, on their way to a 21-3 victory in the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against Raritan Valley.
 
Lackawanna College (9-7), after a 1-2-3 top half of the first, scored three in the second, five in the third, and four in the fourth inning to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 12-3 lead. The Falcons pounded out 23 hits, getting contributions from eight of their nine original starters in the batting line-up, including eight different Falcons with two or more hits. Daniel Keenan was 4-for-6 with three runs scored and an RBI, while hitting two triples, and Eli Riley was 2-for-4 with four RBIs, two walks, two runs scored, a double, and a homerun. Quinn Hanafin went 3-for-4, scoring three runs and driving in two more, while Cody Fleischer continued his hot streak, going 3-for-6 with two RBIs and three runs. Even the only Falcon without a hit, Jacob Simpson, scored three runs, thanks in part to drawing three walks on the day. Aiden Starn picked up his first win of the year, pitching seven strong innings of five-hit ball, giving up three runs, two earned, and striking out seven batters.
 
Raritan (2-10) got a lead in the bottom of the first after a single, followed by a hit by pitch and an error, loaded the bases with nobody out. A fielder's choice brought one run home, and Starn was able to close things out to limit the damage. That gave the Falcons, who went quietly in the top of the first, room to do their thing in the top of the second.
 
It started when Hanafin reached on a single to start the inning. Spencer Butz hit a one-out single to put two aboard, and Simpson drew a walk to load the bases. In stepped Giovanni Lopez, who smashed a double to score a pair and give the Falcons the lead for good at 2-1. Later, with runners on first and third and two away, Christian Rush singled home Simpson, putting the Falcons up 3-1 before the inning ended.
 
After Starn kept things quiet in the bottom of the second, the Falcons got a pair of one-out singles to put two runners on and Butz coming to bat. He would deliver, reaching base on an error on the infield, and advancing to second on an error and throw from right field, which brought in a pair of runs and made it 5-1, Falcons. After Simpson flew out to right, putting Butz on third. With two outs, Lopez delivered again, doubling home Butz and pushing the lead to 6-1. That brought Ranciel Ventura to the plate, and he delivered his first homer of the year with a poke deep into the outfield, putting the Falcons up 8-1 heading into the bottom half of the third.
 
The Lions managed to push a pair of runs across in the bottom frame, with a one-out single with runners on first and third to score one run, and an error allowed another to get across to make it 8-3, Falcons. Starn was able to induce a ground ball for a double play to get out of the inning.
 
Cody Fleischer led the top of the fourth off with a single, and Riley followed with a double, putting runners on second and third with nobody out. Hanafin wasted little time, doubling home both runners to make it 10-3, Falcons. Keenan followed with a triple to score Hanafin, and, after a strikeout, Keenan managed to score on a passed ball, pushing the lead to 12-3, Falcons.  
 
Things quieted down for an inning-and-a-half, as Starn got into a groove and threw up a couple of zeroes in the bottom of the fourth and fifth. That brought Lackawanna to the plate in the top of the sixth, still ahead 12-3. Keenan led the inning off with a triple, and scored on another passed ball. Butz climbed aboard after getting hit by a pitch, advanced to second on a steal, then was awarded third base on a balk. After Simpson put runners on the corners, another balk brought Butz home to make it 14-3, Falcons. Later, with Simpson on third and two away, Rush singled him home. Fleischer got on with a single, putting two aboard when Riley stepped to the plate. He hit a towering drive over the outfield fence, putting the Falcons up 18-3 on the three-run blast.  
 
After another zero thrown up by Starn, the Falcons had a few more runs to score in the top of the seventh. With two out, and runners on second and third, Fleischer delivered with an RBI-single, plating a pair of runs to push the margin to 20-3. A pair of passed balls put Fleischer on third, and a third passed ball brought him home to mark the final run at 21-3.
 
Starn threw another scoreless half inning, his fourth straight, to secure the win for the Falcons.  After the first three innings, Starn allowed just two singles and stranded four base runners the rest of the way for Lackawanna College.
 
Game Two Recap: Lackawanna College 27 – 9 Raritan Valley CC



Lackawanna College scored six runs in the first, and managed runs in six of the seven innings played, as they ran away with a 27-9 win over Raritan Valley in game two of their doubleheader on Thursday afternoon. The Falcons' 27-run output is the most they've scored in nearly seven years, since they put up 28 runs in a 28-0 victory over Valley Forge Military on April 6^th, 2015.
 
The Falcons scored 27 runs on 18 hits, and were lethal from the plate, hitting six homeruns and eleven total extra base hits. Quinn Hanafin continued his torrid start to the year, going 3-for-5 with three runs and a season-high seven RBIs, hitting a pair of homeruns. Hanafin was one of six different Falcons with two or more hits, and one of four Falcons with three hits in the game. Zachary Walsh was 3-for-7 with four RBIs, two runs scored, and a homer of his own, along with a double, while Cole Casamento was 2-for-3 with four runs scored, three RBIs, and three walks, hitting a pair of doubles. Eli Riley went 3-for-3 with four runs scored and an RBI. Daniel Petrouskie got the win, his second of the year, giving up three runs, two earned, on five hits, while striking out six batters in four innings of work.
 
In the top of the first, the Falcons (10-7) had two runners on and one away when Hanafin stepped to the plate, delivering a moon shot of a homerun to quickly put the Falcons ahead, 3-0. The Falcons got a bit of luck after that, when Daniel Keenan struck out, but reached base when the catcher couldn't stay in front of the pitch. Keenan advanced all the way to third on the error, and then came home on a passed ball to make it 4-0, Falcons. After Spencer Butz reached on a hit by pitch, Ranciel Ventura hit his second homer of the day, and the second homer of the inning, a two-run blast to put the Falcons firmly in the driver's seat at 6-0.
 
Petrouskie pitched around a walk in the bottom frame to fire up a zero, and the Falcons had a few more homers for the top of the second. A one-out solo shot from Cody Fleischer extended the margin to 7-0, and, after Riley reached on a single, Hanafin hit another homer for good measure, pushing the Falcon lead to 9-0.
 
In the bottom frame of the second, a one-out error, followed by a pair of singles, loaded the bases for Raritan Valley (2-11). The Lions got one run across, thanks to a balk, to get on the board, and an RBI single scored another, before Petrouskie got out of trouble.  
 
Leading 9-2 in the top of the third, the Falcons weren't done scoring. A one-out walk from Giovanni Lopez put a runner on, and Casamento brought him home with an RBI double. Walsh was up next, and the lead-off man hit his second homerun of the year, stretching the Falcon lead to 12-2. The Falcons had a chance to put more across, with runners on second and third and two away, but a fly out ended the Falcon threat.
 
In the bottom of the fourth, with Lackawanna still ahead 12-2, Raritan got a one-out RBI single to score a runner. After a hit by pitch put another runner on, it was first and second with one out, but a line-out, followed by a big Petrouskie strikeout, ended the threat from Raritan.
 
Lackawanna got the fifth started with a lead-off walk from Casamento, and, after a Walsh single and a steal of second, the Falcons had runners on second and third with nobody out. Fleischer grounded out to score Casamento, and Riley singled home Walsh to put another runner across. With Riley on third after an error, Hanafin delivered again, this time with an RBI single, pushing the Falcon lead to 15-3 heading into the bottom of the fifth.
 
Marc DeNunzio pitched around a lead-off walk with three straight swinging strikeouts, firing up the Falcons for a big top of the sixth inning, where they'd end up scoring nine runs. A passed ball scored the first run, while a bases-loaded walk with one out brought home another. With a 17-3 lead, Daniel Keenan hit a one-out, two-RBI single to stretch the lead further, and a hit by pitch with the bases loaded helped the Falcons break the 20-run barrier for the second straight game. A passed ball brought another run home, and Casamento hit a bases loaded double to score another pair of runs, before a passed ball brought one more run home, staking the Falcons to a 24-3 lead.
 
With Christian Rush on the bump in the bottom of the sixth, The Lions put four runs on the board, courtesy of a pair of singles and a wild pitch, making it 24-7, Lackawanna still in front. The Falcons got a homer from Keenan to lead off the seventh, and Walsh had a two-RBI double to make it 27-7, Lackawanna. Raritan added two more runs in the bottom of the seventh, before Joseph Wileczek closed things out to end the game at 27-9.
 
Next up, the Falcons will keep their Region XIX schedule rolling, when they play host to the Titans from County College of Morris on Saturday, April 2^nd. It'll be a doubleheader, scheduled for 12:00pm and 3:00pm ET, at the Scranton HS baseball field. Both games will be video livestreamed via the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube Channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.