Vestal, N.Y. — The Le Moyne College baseball team fell to Binghamton University on Tuesday afternoon at Bearcats Baseball Complex, 17-6.
Nine different players drove in runs for the Bearcats, led by left fielder Grant Hunter, who homered twice, drove in four runs, walked once and reached on a hit-by-pitch. Catcher Andrew Heppner recorded three hits, including a solo homer, and right fielder Braylen Gonzalez also homered, drove in two runs, and walked twice. Center fielder Matt Bolton added three hits, including a triple, drove in one run and stole two bases, while third baseman Owen Rich and designated hitter Tommy Popoff each drove in two runs.
Right-handed starting pitcher Dan McAliney made the start for the Bearcats, allowing three runs, two of which were earned, striking out two batters and recording the win over 2.0 innings of work. Right-hander Brady Lesiak was the final of Binghamton's four relievers, striking out one batter and allowing two runs in 1.0 inning of work.
For Le Moyne, junior right fielder
Jack Cannon (Webster, N.Y./Webster Schroeder) led the way with two hits, including a home run for his first of the season, drove in four runs, walked once and stole one base. Sophomore designated hitter
Derek Diaz (White Plains, N.Y./Iona Prep) also homered for his first of the season and senior center fielder
Paulie Goodness (
Palmyra, N.Y./Palmyra-Macedon/Finger Lakes Community College) and freshman left fielder
Nick Kriegelstein (
Farmington, N.Y./Victor) each added two hits and a stolen base.
Senior right-hander
Luke Connors (
Brampton, Ontario/Heart Lake/Monroe Community College) made the start for Le Moyne, pitching 1.0 inning and recording the loss. Sophomore right-hander
Michael Pastrana (Montgomery, Ala./Homeschooled) was the second of four relievers for the Dolphins, striking out three batters and allowing one run in 2.0 innings of work.
Goodness led off the game with a single and stole second base to advance into scoring position. The next batter struck out before Cannon lifted a home run over the right field wall to give Le Moyne an early 2-0 lead.
Gonzalez led off the bottom of the first inning with a home run to right center to make it 2-1. The next batter was retired before Bolton tripled to center field. The next batter flied out and Popoff singled up the middle to tie the game at 2-2. Heppner then singled and Hunter followed with a three-run homer over the left field wall to make it 5-2. Back-to-back doubles by shortstop Mike Strellrecht and Rich made it 6-2.
Kriegelstein hit a two-out single in the top of the second for his first collegiate base hit. Redshirt junior second baseman
James Musso (Auburn, N.Y./Skaneateles) followed with a single. Each runner attempted to advance on a wild pitch and an error on the throw to second base allowed Musso to reach third and for Kriegelstein to score to make it 6-3.
Bolton singled and first baseman Steven Kraus walked with one out in the bottom of the second. The runners executed a double steal, and a throwing error on the play allowed Kraus to reach third and for Bolton to score to make it 7-3. Popoff then lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Kraus, and Heppner followed with a two-run shot over the left field wall to give the Bearcats a 10-3 lead.
Diaz hit a solo home run to left field in the top of the fourth inning to make it 10-4.
Hunter hit a solo home run over the left field wall in the bottom of the fourth to make it 11-4.
Binghamton put runners on second and third to begin the bottom of the sixth, and a wild pitch allowed a run to come across to make it 12-4. Back-to-back walks loaded the bases, and Rich worked an RBI walk to make it 13-4. Gonzalez then lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to score the runner from third, and second baseman Sean Sweeney hit an RBI double down the left field to make it 15-4. Bolton followed with an RBI single to score Rich, and pinch hitter Caden Albright lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to give the Bearcats a 17-6 lead.
Back-to-back singles by freshman pinch-hitter
Luke Becker (
Liverpool, N.Y. Christian Brothers Academy) and junior catcher
Cooper Romich (
North Chili, N.Y./Churchville-Chili) put runners on first and second with two outs in the top of the seventh inning. Cannon followed with a two-run double to center field to make it 17-6. Lesiak got the final batter of the game to ground out and secured the 17-6 victory for Binghamton.
Le Moyne will return to action on Saturday against Coppin State University for the Dolphins' first home series of the season at 3:00 p.m. The original series opener with the Eagles scheduled for Friday has been shifted to Sunday to form a doubleheader starting at 11:00 a.m. due to expected inclement weather.
