Lackawanna College

5/2/26
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – A late-game collapse in game one spelled doom for Lackawanna College baseball in game two, as the Falcons fell in a pair of games to CCBC Essex on Saturday afternoon in non-region action, 7-6 and 22-10, at Scranton HS baseball field.
 
The Falcons (19-26-1) were ahead in game one by a 6-2 score heading into the top of the seventh inning, but the Knights (34-13) rallied, loading the bases and hitting a grand slam homer to tie the game before the first out was recorded. They'd add one more run on a bang-bang play at first, where an error allowed a runner to come home and put Essex up 7-6 heading into the home half, where Lackawanna couldn't muster any offense to get back in front.
 
After Essex jumped in front on a leadoff homer to start the game, Lackawanna responded in the bottom frame of the first, getting a pair of two-out RBI hits from Hunter Austra (Larksville, PA) and Danny Stickney (Secane, PA) to go ahead 2-1.
 
Essex added a run in the second on a two-out single, taking advantage of an error from the Falcons that let a runner get to third, but Lackawanna scored two more in the bottom half, when Kolton Haifley (New Oxford, PA) led the inning off with a homer, and Jake Virbitsky (Media, PA) followed up with a two-out single that made it 4-2, Lackawanna.
 
A wild pitch in the third scored another Lackawanna run, and a sac fly in the fourth gave the Falcons a 6-2 advantage. Lackawanna had two more batters on that inning, but couldn't scratch more across, setting up Essex to rally, eventually, in the seventh.
 
Deacon Brown (Williamsport, PA) was 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Virbitsky had two RBIs. Stickney, Haifley, and Sean Moore (Philadelphia, PA) each had two hits. Levi Hooven (Johnson City, TN) was hit with the loss, his second of the year. Lackawanna got solid relief outings from Daniel Jacobs (West Chester, PA), Liam Newhouse (Philadelphia, PA) and Tobe Kuntz (Lancaster, PA), who all combined for four innings and four strikeouts and just one hit.
 
Game two was a close one right up until the fourth inning, when Essex exploded for eight runs to get ahead 11-3, and then it quickly turned into a rout later, as Essex added eleven more runs over the final two innings to pull away for the run-rule victory. The Knights had seven extra-base knocks, including four doubles and two triples, pounding out 13 hits but also drawing 13 walks.
 
Lackawanna trailed 3-1 heading into the home half of the third, but Austra and Stickney hit back-to-back doubles with two outs to tie things up at 3-3 heading towards the fourth. The Knights led the fourth off with a walk, a single, and a sac bunt that pushed runners to second and third. A ground out to deep shortstop pushed a run across, then seven-straight RBI hits scored seven more runs, which included three-straight doubles and a triple. When the dust settled, Essex led 11-3.
 
The Falcons added two runs on an RBI single and a wild pitch, but the Knights responded with two more on a two-run single in the fifth inning. Up 13-5, Essex added nine more in the sixth, taking advantage of ten walks and a grand slam, the only hit of the inning, making it 22-5 heading into the bottom frame.
 
Needing to score at least eight runs to keep the game alive, Lackawanna College got a two-run homer from Julian Montez (Westfield, NJ) and a two-run error that made it 22-9. A one-out double scored another run to make it 22-10, but a soft fly ball to second and a ground out ended the game early via run-rule.
 
Julian Abreu (Philadelphia, PA) scored two runs and hit a double, while Virbitsky had two hits and two RBIs. Stickney had two hits and an RBI, while Montez had the pinch-hit two-run homer late. Pitcher Geoffrey Moore (Erie, CO) got the loss, his second of the season.
 
Lackawanna College will now turn its attention to the postseason, as the Falcons will head to the Region XIX Division II playoffs, being held at Mercer County CC, starting on Thursday, May 7^th. The Falcons, the defending champions, are the three-seed, and they will face two-seed Sussex County CC. A start time will be confirmed early this week.