Williamsport, Pa. – The SUNY Poly baseball team split a doubleheader against Lycoming on Sunday afternoon, earning a 5–2 victory in the opener before falling 8–0 in the second game. With the split, the Wildcats move to 1–4 on the season.
GAME ONE:
SUNY Poly threatened in the opening inning as Johnny Yamin worked a leadoff walk and Luke Landis and Ryan Pelton followed with two-out singles, but Lycoming escaped the early jam to keep the game scoreless.
The Wildcats broke through in the second inning. Daniel Flaherty was hit by a pitch to start the frame and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt by Will Orlando. John Leonard then singled to put runners on the corners before Brody Liddy drove in the game's first run with an RBI fielder's choice. Moments later, Yamin lined a single up the middle to plate Liddy and give SUNY Poly a 2–0 lead.
SUNY Poly added to its advantage in the fourth. Orlando led off with a double down the left-field line and came home when Leonard delivered another single up the middle, extending the Wildcats' lead to 3–0.
Lycoming threatened several times through the middle innings but SUNY Poly's pitching and defense held firm. The Warriors stranded runners in both the fifth and sixth innings and left two more on base in the fourth after a pair of hit-by-pitches.
The Wildcats carried their 3–0 lead into the eighth before Lycoming mounted a rally. Josh Bottger led off with a single and eventually scored on an RBI single by Anthony Guzman. Later in the inning, Kaden Shay drove in another run on a fielder's choice to cut the deficit to 3–2.
SUNY Poly answered immediately in the ninth. Mike Lazaridis drew a walk and Landis followed with a double down the left-field line to bring him home. Pelton then added an RBI single up the middle to score Landis and extend the lead to 5–2.
The Warriors put a runner aboard in the bottom of the ninth after a hit-by-pitch, but the Wildcats closed the door as Trevor French recorded the final outs to secure the 5–2 victory.
GAME TWO:
Lycoming jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning, capitalizing on a pair of SUNY Poly errors. After Nick Reeder walked and Sean Perkins was hit by a pitch, the Warriors loaded the bases when Eric MacCluen reached on an error. Another throwing error allowed two runs to score, and Tyler Iams followed with a two-run single to center field to give Lycoming a 4–0 advantage.
The Wildcats looked to respond in the fourth inning when Ryan Pelton singled and later moved into scoring position. Will Orlando worked a walk and John Leonard singled to left, but Pelton was thrown out at the plate to end the threat.
SUNY Poly had another opportunity in the fifth. Skyler Unebasami singled and Landis doubled to right-center to put runners on second and third, but the Wildcats were unable to push a run across as the inning ended with the bases loaded.
Lycoming extended its lead in the bottom of the fifth. Perkins led off with a walk and Brody Lindsey reached on a single that was misplayed in the field, putting runners at second and third. MacCluen then delivered an RBI single, and Anthony Guzman brought home another run with a sacrifice bunt to make it 6–0.
The Warriors added two more runs in the sixth. Tyler Wetzel stole home after advancing on a wild pitch and Brody Lindsey followed with an RBI single to push the lead to 8–0.
SUNY Poly managed a leadoff single from Jackson Mackenzie in the seventh, but Lycoming retired the next three batters to close out the 8–0 victory and salvage a split of the doubleheader.
