4/26/24
 
GEORGETOWN, De. – Nicholas Finarelli threw a no-hitter in game one, and the Lackawanna offense left no-doubt in game two, as the Lackawanna College baseball Falcons picked up a pair of Region XIX DII victories in a doubleheader sweep over Delaware Tech CC on Friday afternoon in Delaware. The Falcons won game one, 8-0, before taking game two by a 16-4 margin.
 
Finarelli (Redshirt First Year; Hunlock Creek, PA) pitched his best game of the season in game one, striking out 12 in seven innings and throwing a no-hitter, the first no-hitter thrown by one pitcher since Kyle Scott threw a no-hitter in five innings three years ago. That performance was all that the Falcons (23-21, 9-5) needed, steadily building a lead throughout the contest. The highlight came in a four-run fifth inning, where the Falcons broke open a tight 2-0 contest with an error, then a three-run opposite field blast by David Baltrusaitis (Sophomore; Tunkhannock, PA), putting the Falcons ahead 6-0 heading into the bottom frame. Lackawanna added two more on RBI-singles from Aydan McNelly (Sophomore; Limerick, PA) and Ty Federici (Sophomore; Dallas, PA) in the sixth. Jacob Simpson (Sophomore; Scranton, PA) got the scoring started in the top of the third with a two-run single, giving Lackawanna a lead it would never surrender.
 
Baltrusaitis was 2-for-3 with three RBI, while Federici went 2-for-3. Michael Rickert (Sophomore; Moosic, PA) was 1-for-2 with three runs scored and three walks, and Finarelli's brilliance on the mound was his fifth win of the year.
 
The Falcons stranded four base runners through the first two innings, including the bases loaded with one out in the second, but Finarelli retired the minimum with four strikeouts through two, including three straight strikeouts to open the game in the first. The third inning was where the Falcons broke out. A hit batter, followed by a Rickert walk, put two on with nobody out. A double-steal made it runners on second and third, and with one out, Simpson delivered with a single to right field, scoring the pair and putting Lackawanna ahead at 2-0.
 
Finarelli kept things at a minimum through four innings, and the Falcons gave him some more support in the fifth. A leadoff single from Louis Kegerreis (Redshirt First Year; Murrysville, PA) was followed with another Rickert walk, putting runners on first and second with no one out. A throwing error on the catcher, trying to catch Kegerreis stealing third, resulted in Kegerreis coming home to make it 3-0. Later, a one-out walk from Simpson put a second base runner aboard. In stepped Baltrusaitis, and the righty cracked a pitch to deep right center field, where the ball clanked off the scoreboard for a three-run homerun, extending Lackawanna's advantage to 6-0. The Falcons put two more base runners on, before the home side got the final two outs.
 
Another three straight strikeouts for Finarelli closed the fifth, and the Falcons added two more in the sixth, when McNelly singled home Rickert with one out, and Federici singled in McNelly with two outs, pushing the Falcons up to an 8-0 advantage.
 
Finarelli's perfect game was spoiled when he walked the leadoff batter in the sixth, and Delaware Tech (14-29, 3-11) used back-to-back walks to open the inning to put two on. But, a ground out, followed by a strike out and a fielder's choice, stranded the runners and kept the scoreboard clean. In the bottom of the seventh, Del Tech got a leadoff walk, but Finarelli retired the next three in a row, including a strikeout looking to end the game, guaranteeing the Falcons the win and the no-hitter.
 
Two separate six-run innings helped pace the Falcons with an offensive attack that never let up in game two. The first inning was highlighted by two wild pitches, a run-scoring single, and a three-run bomb from Logan Mote (Redshirt First Year; Branchburg, NJ), putting Lackawanna up 6-0 right out of the chute. Leading 8-1 into the fourth, the Falcons added six more, thanks to some RBI-singles, a hit batter, and a one-run double from Jake Kelleher (First Year; Exeter, PA). Nicholas Biasi (First Year; Hazle Township, PA) picked up the win, allowing one run on three hits in three innings and striking out four. McNelly was 3-for-4 with two RBI and three runs scored, while Kelleher went 2-for-4 with two RBI, and Mote was 1-for-4 with four RBI. Rickert scored two more runs on two walks, and Nick Matson (Redshirt First Year; Nanticoke, PA) had two hits and two runs scored.
 
Matson led game two off with a single, and a walk to Kegerreis put two on. A double steal put the runners in scoring position, and a wild pitch let Matson score the game's first run. Another walk was followed by a single from McNelly to score a run, and Simpson drew another walk to load the bases with nobody out. A one-out wild pitch let a run score, and Mote stepped up and drilled a shot for a three-run homer to make it 6-0, Falcons. Del Tech singled to start the bottom half, but a pickoff eliminated the base runner. The home side got a two-out double, but Biasi got the ground out to end the inning.
 
The Falcons struck for two more in the top of the third. McNelly led the inning off with a single, and a Simpson walk put two on. A fielder's choice put runners on the corners with one out, but a fly out made it two outs, now with runners in scoring position. Brooks Henderson IV (First Year; Feasterville, PA) doubled to score a pair of runs, giving Lackawanna an 8-0 advantage.
 
Del Tech finally got on the board in the third. A leadoff walk, followed by a one-out single and a hit batter, loaded the bases with one out. A wild pitch let a runner come home, but Biasi recovered to get a strikeout and a line out to strand the runners and keep it to just a run in the third.
 
A six-spot followed from Lackawanna in the fourth. With the bases loaded and nobody out, McNelly singled to score a run. Then, Simpson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, Vincent Proietto (Sophomore; Drexel Hill, PA) singled, and Mote hit into a fielder's choice, scoring three runs and leaving it to runners at first and second with one out and the Falcons ahead 12-1. A sac bunt pushed the runners to scoring position, and Kelleher brought the pair home with a double to blow things wide open at 14-1.
 
Mason Sike (First Year; McKees Rocks, PA) pitched around a leadoff single in the fourth with a strikeout and a 6-4-3 double play, then struck out the side around another single in the bottom of the fifth. The Falcons added two more in the sixth, thanks to a two-out single from Kelleher, followed by a double from John Hughes (First Year; Hamilton, NJ) that made it 16-1, Falcons. Two errors by the Falcons in the field allowed two unearned runs to score in the bottom frame of the sixth, and relief pitcher Reymer Rodriguez (First Year; Bonao, Dominican Republic) allowed a run home after back-to-back singles to open the bottom of the seventh, but Rodriguez buckled down to get three straight outs, and Lackawanna completed the doubleheader sweep in Region XIX play.
 
The Falcons are now 9-5 in the Region XIX DII standings, sitting in third just behind County College of Morris, who is also 9-5 in region, but has a better overall record. Both teams have one game remaining, with Morris on the road at top-seed Mercer County CC, while Lackawanna hosts Delaware Tech CC. If the Falcons win, and Morris loses, then Lackawanna will become the two-seed in the Region XIX playoffs on Friday May 10^th, hosted by Mercer County CC. A loss by Lackawanna, or a win by Morris, would lock Lackawanna into the third-seed. The Falcons will take on Delaware Tech in their Region XIX finale on Saturday, April 27^th, with first pitch at 1:00pm ET from Scranton HS baseball field.