4/11/23
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – In a match-up between two rival teams each at the back ends of their bullpens, Lackawanna College and Monroe College offered a nine-inning thriller, with the lead changing hands several times until Monroe ended things with four runs in the top of the ninth and a scoreless bottom half to outlast Lackawanna, 15-13, on Tuesday night at Scranton HS.
 
The Falcons (18-13) were without a few starters and, much like the Mustangs, were at the back of their rotation, while Monroe (21-11) came in riding a hot streak since sweeping Lackawanna a month ago, having gone 11-2 in its last 13. Lackawanna College held a 6-3 lead into the sixth, when the Mustangs rallied with six runs to give themselves a 9-6 advantage. Lackawanna College responded in the bottom sixth with five runs, highlighted by a Ranciel Ventura (Allentown, PA) double to tie the game, and a Vincent Proietto (Drexel Hill, PA) triple that made it 11-9, Falcons. Monroe tied the game in the top of the seventh, but the Falcons added runs in the seventh and eighth to take a 13-11 lead into the ninth. Down to its last out, the Mustangs got a bases-loaded double to take the lead, then another double that made it 15-13. Lackawanna had a chance in the ninth, when pinch-hitter Zachary Walsh (Spring Brook Twp., PA) reached on a hit-by-pitch with two outs, but a strikeout ended the potential rally and gave the Mustangs a late win on the road. Michael Miller (Lafayette Hill, PA) finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBI, while Michael Rickert (Moosic, PA) had a pair of triples and three RBI. Ventura went 2-for-3 with three RBI, and Eric Ludwick (Bethlehem, PA) was 1-for-3 with four runs scored and three walks on the day.
 
Knowing they'd need to find innings from some arms, the Falcons turned to Ty Morris (Manchester Valley, MD) to start the game. Morris got the Falcons going with a 1-2-3 top of the first, and Lackawanna gave him something to chew on in the bottom frame. Ian Murphy (West Deptford, NJ) doubled with one out to give the Falcons a baserunner, and advanced to third on a fly out to right. With two outs, Miller slapped a single to right to score Murphy and make it 1-0, Falcons, after one inning.
 
A leadoff double from Monroe was wasted, as Morris got a strikeout, followed by a pair of ground outs, to strand the runner. Morris would strand more runners in the top of the third, after a two-out walk, followed by a single, put runners on the corners. Morris got a lineout to Ludwick at first to end the inning and keep the Falcons in front at 1-0 heading into the bottom third.
 
Lackawanna had the bases loaded with nobody out, and got back-to-back sac flies from Miller and George Castro (Philadelphia, PA) to make it 3-0, Falcons. With two outs, Rickert smoked an RBI triple to the gap in right center, staking the Falcons to a 4-0 advantage and forcing a pitching change from Monroe. That change paid off, as a strikeout stranded Rickert at third.
 
Devin Fletcher (Bethlehem, PA) came on for Morris to start the fourth. A hit-by-pitch, followed by a single, put two on and nobody out. A weak grounder to Fletcher was flung by the big righty way past a diving Rickert covering first, making for an error that scored two runs and put the batter on third. Another error, this time on short, plated another run, but the Falcons did manage to get the batter out trying to stretch a one-base error into two. Fletcher bounced back with a strike out, then the defense helped him out when, after a two-out single, Cole Casamento (Limerick, PA) combined with Ventura to catch the baserunner stealing and get the Falcons out of the inning with the 4-3 lead.
 
Joseph Mandarano (Dunmore, PA) came in for a rare pitching appearance to start the top of the fifth, and Mando impressed, retiring the side and striking out a pair to give the Falcons a boost heading into the bottom of the frame. A leadoff walk was rewarded with an RBI double from Miller that pushed the lead to 5-3, Falcons. Later, with Miller on third and one away, Rickert tripled to right-center for the second time in a row, pushing another run across to make it 6-3, Falcons. The Falcons later had the bases loaded with two outs, but a line out to left ended the inning and stranded the runners.
 
Things started to unravel for Lackawanna in the top of the sixth. A leadoff single, plus an error in the outfield, let a runner on at second. The three straight RBI hits, capped by an RBI single, suddenly tied the game, still with nobody out. Another single, followed by a fielder's choice that got the lead runner, kept the inning rolling. With one out, a ground ball was rolled to short, but a throwing error cost the Falcons a pair of runs, giving Monroe an 8-6 lead and forcing Lackawanna College to go to the pen and lift Mandarano for Marc DeNunzio (Thornwood, NY). DeNunzio gave up a sac fly to right that made it 9-6, Mustangs, but got a big strikeout to end the inning and get the Falcons up to bat in the bottom of the sixth.
 
A Murphy leadoff single, followed by a walk, put two on with nobody out and forced a Monroe pitching change. Another walk loaded the bases with nobody out, and, after a strikeout, a bases-loaded walk from Rickert brought one run home. With the bases loaded and one down, Ventura slapped a single to left, scoring a pair and tying the game at 9-9, forcing another Monroe pitching change. A strikeout put two away, but an error on the catcher throwing to first let Ventura get all the way to third, and also put Rickert at home to give the Falcons a 10-9 lead. That's when Proietto laced a line-drive triple to the right field gap, scoring Ventura and giving the Falcons an 11-9 lead after six innings.
 
DeNunzio came out and got a strike out to star the top of the seventh, but a single, followed by a double, immediately put some pressure on the Falcons. A pop up put two away, but a single, combined with an error in the outfield, plated two more runs and tied the game at 11-11. DeNunzio got out of trouble and the inning with a strikeout to strand a runner on third.
 
A one-out double from Ludwick gave the Falcons a baserunner, and he came home on another RBI single from Miller, which made it 12-11, Falcons. The Birds had something cooking, but a tailor-made 4-6-3 double play ended the threat.
 
Matthew McElligott (Columbus, OH) came on to pitch the eighth, and he immediately got into trouble with back-to-back walks. A fielder's choice gave the Falcons one out and put runners on the corners, but a hit batter loaded the bases with the heart of the order up. McElligott got a big second out on a pop up to third, and then got a massive swinging strikeout to strand the bases loaded and fire up the Falcons. In the bottom of the eighth, another Falcon run came home when Ventura poked a single through to left field. Joseph Wileczek (West Chester, PA), who had come in for Rickert earlier in the game, zipped around the bases, thanks to an error in the outfield, and came home to score to give the Falcons a two-run lead. Ventura was throw out trying to stretch what had been a one-base error for himself into two, getting tagged out at third. A one-out walk, followed by a two-out double from Christian Rush (Perkasie, PA) had the Falcons in business with two down, but an excellent diving play at short robbed Murphy of an RBI hit and sent the game into the top of the ninth.
 
Ben Riddick (Manassas, VA) came on to try to close out the ninth. He got a ground out to start the inning, but a walk, followed by a hit-by-pitch and a wild pitch, put runners on second and third with one out. Riddick bounced back for a big strikeout to put two away, and had two strikes on the next batter, but surrendered a walk to load the bases. That's when Monroe made Lackawanna pay, lining a double to left field to clear the bases and take a 14-13 lead. An RBI double to right plated another run, and gave Monroe a two-run lead heading into the bottom of the ninth.
 
Leading off the ninth, Ludwick hit a moon shot that, seemingly, was caught on the warning track by the left fielder. There was a delay in calling the out, and a question about whether there was actually a catch, but the umpires ruled Ludwick out. Another fly out to left, this one less controversial, put two away. Pinch hitter Walsh reached after getting plunked. Donald Healey (Olyphant, PA) came on for Wileczek to hit, but Healey struck out swinging to end the game and give Monroe the wild victory.
 
Lackawanna College now turns its attention to a Region XIX DII match-up on Friday, April 14^th, when the Falcons travel to Delaware to take on Delaware Tech CC in the first game of a scheduled three-game series. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00pm ET in Georgetown, DE.