4/22/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College baseball team had a strong showing in game one, but couldn't keep things rolling in game two, earning a split with the rugged UConn Avery Point Pointers in their Friday doubleheader at Scranton High on Friday afternoon. The Falcons came back from a 4-0 deficit to score six runs in the bottom of the fourth, then held off the Pointers to win 8-7 in game one. It was a different story in game two, as UConn Avery Point scored five runs in the first two innings, then coasted the rest of the way to a 9-2 victory.
 
The Falcons (17-11) struggled offensive through most of the afternoon, similar to their first doubleheader with the Pointers last Friday, but managed to find the offense they needed in game one. Lackawanna College struck out a combined 19 times in the two games.
 
Game One Recap: Lackawanna College 8 – 7 UConn Avery Point (7 Innings)
The Falcons overcame a 4-0 deficit through four innings, scoring six in the bottom of the fourth, and then holding UConn Avery Point in the seventh inning to help Lackawanna to an 8-7 victory in the first game of the doubleheader between the two on Friday afternoon in Scranton.
 
Lackawanna College (17-10) collected ten hits, five coming in the fourth inning alone, to help get themselves over the hump against UCAP. The Falcons overcame a short outing from Kyle Scott, who only went one inning, and pieced together a solid pitching performance. Mason Drummond would get the win, his first of the year, thanks to a solid one inning of relief, striking out a pair without giving up a hit or run. Zachary Walsh was solid at the top of the lineup, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI, coming on the go-ahead double in the fourth to give the Falcons the lead for good. Quinn Hanafin was 2-for-4 with a run scored, while George Castro went 2-for-3 with three RBI and two runs. Castro had a big two-run double to tie the game in the fourth, and then hit a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth.
 
UCAP (17-8-1) got things going in the top of the first, thanks to a leadoff double, which they promptly turned into the game's first run on a one-out single, making it 1-0. Another single put two on, but Scott recovered to get a fly out, followed by a strikeout to end the top half of the first.
 
Cody Fleischer drew a one-out walk, stole second, then got to third on an error, putting the Falcons' first run ninety feet from the dish, but a pair of strikeouts ended the scoring threat and kept the Falcons off the board.
 
In the top of the second, Jason Carpenter came on in relief of Scott. Carp pitched around a walk to keep the Pointers off the board, but the Falcons couldn't get a Daniel Keenan two-out single to stick in the bottom frame.
 
Another quiet inning led to the top of the fourth, where the Pointers added to their lead. With Dan Petrouskie on the mound for Lackawanna, the Pointers got a single, followed by a double and a walk, loading the bases with nobody out. A fielder's choice scored one run, a sac fly to left scored another, and an RBI double made it 4-0, Pointers.  
 
The Falcons finally found their offense in the bottom of the fourth. Daniel Helfgott got on-base thanks to a hit-by-pitch, and Hanafin singled to put two on with nobody out. A strikeout was the first out, but Eli Riley singled to load the bases. With Keenan at the bat, a passed ball allowed Helfgott to score the first Falcon run. Another passed ball, this time on ball four, brought Hanafin home, cutting the UCAP lead to 4-2. With two on and one out, Castro delivered with an RBI double, scoring a pair of runs to tie the game. After a pop-out put two away, Walsh hit the go-ahead double to bring home Castro, making it 5-4, Falcons. Fleischer followed with an RBI single, scoring the speedy Walsh to put the Falcons up 6-4.
 
Mason Drummond and Keon Burkholder each pitched scoreless top halves of the fifth and sixth, and the Falcons tacked on another pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth, when Castro led the inning off with a solo homer to straight away center field. Walsh later hit a one-out double, and he'd come around to score on a Helfgott RBI single, making it 8-4, Falcons.
 
Into the top of the seventh, with Samuel Daniels on the mound, the Pointers made one last push. A leadoff walk, followed by a hit-by-pitch, put two on with nobody out. Daniels got a line out for the first out, but a single loaded the bases, with one away. A two-run single cut the lead in half, and, still with one out, a sac groundout to second brought it to a one-run game at 8-7. Daniels managed to get the final out on a swinging strikeout to end the scoring threat and secure the win for the Falcons, their first in three tries over the Pointers this year.  
 
Game Two Recap: UConn Avery Point 9 – 2 Lackawanna College


UConn Avery Point scored five runs in the first two innings, and held the Lackawanna offense in check the rest of the way, coasting to a 9-2 victory to earn a split of the doubleheader on Friday afternoon in Scranton.  
 
Lackawanna College (17-11) struggled mightily from the plate, managing only six hits, and striking out eleven times. Quinn Hanafin was 1-for-2 with two RBI, while Cody Fleischer went 1-for-2 with a run scored, and Christian Rush was 1-for-4 with a run scored. On the flip-side, the Falcons couldn't piece together enough pitching to keep the Pointers off the board. Marc DeNunzio got tagged with the loss, pitching three innings and giving up five runs on eight hits.  
 
UCAP (18-8-1) jumped on DeNunzio right out of the gate, using a one-out double and single to put runners on the corners. An RBI single scored one run, and a wild pitch put runners on second and third, still with one out. A two-run double followed, stretching the Pointer lead to 3-0. A sac ground out eventually made it 4-0, before DeNunzio got a ground out to end the top of the first.
 
In the bottom frame, Fleischer got on with a two-out single, and was immediately knocked in by a Hanafin double to the outfield, cutting the deficit to 4-1. A fly out ended the inning before the Falcons could get on a roll.
 
The Pointers added a run in the top of the second, thanks to a pair of two-out singles, making it 5-1, UCAP. The Falcons got a runner on a dropped third strike with two outs, but stranded the runner with a strikeout to end the inning.
 
Lackawanna College got a run back in the bottom of the third. A leadoff single from Rush, got things started, and a one-out walk from Fleischer put runners on the corners with one out. Hanafin flied out to right, bringing Rush home to make it 5-2. A ground out ended the inning, once again, before the Falcons could get things rolling.
 
Derrick Newman took the hill for the Falcons in the top of the fourth inning. An error on the infield allowed the first batter to reach, and Newman walked another batter, but he had two on with two out in the inning, when an RBI single scored the unearned run to make it 6-2. The Pointers had the bases loaded, but Newman got a ground out to first to get out of the inning.
 
Lackawanna College had a golden opportunity in the bottom of the fourth, when a pair of singles, followed by a walk, loading the bases with nobody out. Pinch hitter Samuel Daniels hit a hot-shot liner to short, but a nice play was made to get the first out. Rush popped out, and Spencer Butz went down looking on strikes, taking the wind out of the sails for the Falcons and keeping UCAP ahead 6-2.
 
Both teams kept things quiet in the fifth, but the Pointers got a few more runs across in the sixth. Lackawanna's Daniel Keenan took the hill, and an error, followed by a double, put runners on second and third with nobody out. A two-run single stretched the lead to 8-2, but Keenan recovered to get three straight outs and get the Falcons into the bottom of the sixth. Once there, Lackawanna had some two-out magic brewing with a single, followed by a walk, but a strikeout ended the threat and stranded a pair of runners.
 
In the top of the seventh, Zachary Walsh took the mound for the Falcons. A one-out walk, followed by a double, made it 9-2, Pointers, before Walsh got a strikeout and a fly out to end the inning.  
 
With their last licks coming up in the bottom of the seventh, the Falcons had a runner on third with one out, but a pair of strikeouts ended the inning and the game, giving the Pointers the win, their third over the Falcons this season.
 
The Falcons get right back to work on Saturday, April 23^rd, with a doubleheader against Monroe College that starts at 2:00pm ET at Scranton High's baseball field. The second game is scheduled to follow at 4:30pm ET. Both games will be streamed live on the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube Channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.