4/9/24
 
LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY – Needing a win to right the ship, and trailing by three near the midway point of the game, Lackawanna College used an offensive outburst to race past SUNY Sullivan, 21-11, in a high-scoring affair in non-region NJCAA action on Tuesday afternoon in New York.
 
The Falcons (14-16) were down 7-4 after four innings, and were two outs into the top of the fifth, when the explosive Lackawanna offense came alive. Back-to-back errors put two Falcons on, and a Nick Matson (Redshirt First Year; Nanticoke, PA) RBI-single cut the lead to two. A walk loaded the bases, and a hit batter made it a 7-6 game, before Aydan McNelly (Sophomore; Limerick, PA) delivered with a run-scoring single to tie the game at 7-all. Another error let another run score, giving Lackawanna the lead, and a bases-loaded walk gave Lackawanna the 9-7 advantage heading into the bottom frame.
 
After a quick bottom of the fifth, the lead expanded further, thanks to a seven-run sixth inning. Another Matson RBI-single, followed by a sac fly, a wild pitch, and another RBI-single, pushed the Lackawanna lead out to 13-7. A two-out bases-loaded walk made it 14-7, and a two-run single from Liam Haywood (First Year; Newtown, CT) blew things wide-open at 16-7.
 
Sullivan (10-9) got it to 16-10, but the Falcons added five more in the eighth inning, thanks to a Vincent Proietto (Sophomore; Drexel Hill, PA) RBI-single, followed by wild pitch, and then a three-run homerun from Louis Kegerreis (Redshirt First Year; Murrysville, PA), putting the Falcons way out of reach at 21-10. Lackawanna would give up a run, but stranded the bases loaded to end the game early via run-rule.
 
The Falcons compiled 13 total hits and drew 15 walks on the Generals. McNelly was stellar, going 4-for-5 with four RBI and a run scored, while Kegerreis was 3-for-6 with four runs scored and three RBI. Matson had four runs scored and a pair of RBI, while Proietto also had four runs scored and two RBI, as well as three walks. Haywood finished 1-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBI. Hayden Klyver (First Year; Wilton, CT) picked up the win, his first of the season, thanks to four innings of relief, giving up five runs on six hits, but striking out a season-best seven batters.
 
The win was the second for the Falcons on the year against SUNY Sullivan, the team that Lackawanna beat last season to win the East District championship. The Falcons have now won four of their last five games, scoring a combined 84 runs in that span. Lackawanna now turns its attention to this weekend, when the Falcons will start a three-game series with Mercer County CC. The Falcons will travel to Trenton to meet the Vikings for a single nine-inning contest on Friday, April 12^th, at 3:00pm ET, before hosting Mercer in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 13^th, at Scranton HS. First pitch of the doubleheader is at 3:00pm ET. The Vikings are first in the Region XIX DII standings, at 7-1, while the Falcons are second at 4-2.