The afternoon of April 9 was the perfect day for baseball as the Ithaca College baseball team defeated out-of-conference foe Hamilton College 12–11 at Valesente Diamond at Freeman Field.
The Bombers were riding high heading into the matchup after taking two out of three this past weekend against the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers, while the Continentals were looking to get back on track after losing its previous five contests.
Lefty senior pitcher Sean Kelly took the bump for the Bombers after throwing five innings just two days prior. He got into trouble early as Continentals’ leadoff hitter sophomore outfielder Taylor Kaufman was able to get on when his fly ball to right field dropped as Bombers senior outfielder Colin Shashaty lost the ball in the sun. After a successful bunt attempt by first-year student outfielder Jeremy Diaz, the Continentals were set up for success. The Continentals were able to knock two across the board thanks to an RBI single up the middle by senior designated hitter Jackson Sattinger and a sacrifice fly by senior right fielder Jack Griffin.
In the bottom of the first inning, the Bombers looked to rally back against Continentals starting sophomore pitcher TJ Takis. Takis struggled with his command and at one point in the inning threw 10 consecutive balls. This led to an opposite-field RBI single past a diving shortstop by Bombers first-year first-baseman Camden Laney, which cut the Continentals’ lead to 2–1.
In the top half of the second, Kelly was able to settle in, retiring the side in order, including a strikeout against Continentals’ junior second baseman Carter Chambers where Kelly demonstrated grit battling back from being down 3–0 in the count.
In the bottom half of the second, Takis continued to struggle to find the zone. After Bombers’ junior center fielder Collin Feeney was able to leg out an infield single to shortstop, he continued to use his speed as he stole second and third base. After a walk to Bomber catcher junior Tyler Pugliese, Takis remained rattled, throwing two wild pitches that allowed Feeney and eventually Pugliese to score as the Bombers pulled in front 3–2.
The action did not stop there as the Bombers continued their scrappy ways even after the Continentals put first-year student pitcher Ethan Righter into the game for Takis. Later in the inning with one out, Bombers junior first baseman Ryan Laubscher knocked in two runs with a single to right center. He drove in senior left fielder Louis Fabbo, who reached after being hit by a pitch, and Shashaty who reached on a fielder’s choice to give the Bombers a 5–2 lead.
After another scoreless inning from Kelly that saw him strand three runners on base, the Bombers expanded their lead in the bottom half of the inning. The scoring started with an RBI single from Shashaty, driving in Pugliese who reached on a stand-up double to deep left field. The very next hitter was Fabbo who hit a high deep drive to left which had just enough distance to clear the stadium. This was Fabbo’s third home run on the season and the Bombers led 8–2 through the first three innings.
The score remained the same through the next two innings. Junior pitcher Dan Kellachan came in for relief of Kelly and pitched a scoreless fourth and ended up recording the win for the Bombers. Senior pitcher Bo Nicholson came on in the fifth and retired the side in order.
However, Nicholson began to run into trouble in the sixth. After a throwing error by Laubscher at third, Nicholson hit the next two batters to load the bases. The Continentals were able to capitalize on the opportunity as first-year student outfielder Gianni DiCerbo ended the team’s dry spell by hitting a fielder’s choice, driving in first-year student third baseman Alfonso Rada to cut the Bombers lead to 8–3.
The Continentals scored their fourth run when Sattinger recorded his second RBI of the game, driving in second baseman first-year student Chester Boynton who reached base on an error. The scoring streak continued for the Continentals when junior catcher Greg Kopp drove a line drive up the middle for a single, driving in first-year student pinch runner Ryan Gawley. At this point, the Bombers called on first-year lefty pitcher Keaton Blackwood out of the bullpen. Blackwood bore down and forced a ground out to get out of the inning.
The Bombers looked to rally back in the bottom of the sixth. With sophomore pitcher Daniel Jirgal on the mound, the Bombers started off strong with a walk from Laubscher followed by another single from Laney. This was followed by a bases clearing double from sophomore outfielder Matt Curtis to deep center field and the Bombers led 10–5. The South Hill squad was not content with this five-run lead and continued pushing the agenda at the plate. After Jirgal left the game for first-year student Jackson Mavrides, Feeney hit the ball on a rope down the right field line, scoring Curtis.
Unfortunately, while attempting to extend his hit into a triple, Feeney tripped in between second and third base. This led to a rundown and ultimately Feeney was tagged out. Later in the inning, after a walk by Pugliese and a bloop single into right-center by Shashaty, Fabbo was able to drive in his third run of the day with a single to right field. With six innings in the books the Bombers led 12–5.
In the seventh, Blackwood remained sharp. He utilized a nasty breaking ball, striking out Rada. Boynton attempted to get on base with a bunt. He laid down a perfectly placed ball down the third base line. Blackwood sprinted off the mound, picked up the ball, planted his feet and fired a rocket to Laney at first to get out the inning.
Unfortunately, things began to take a turn for the worse for the Bombers in the eighth. First-year pitcher Cooper Albert entered the game for the Bombers and immediately ran into trouble. He gave up RBI singles to both Sattinger and Kopp which cut the lead down to five runs. Albert was able to record one out when he forced senior first-baseman Charlie O’Brien into a fielder’s choice. However, this success was short-lived as he then lost a long battle with senior center fielder Jack Griffin which resulted in a Griffin walk. He then hit Jackson resulting in another run for the Continentals and this was the end of Albert’s day.
Next, sophomore pitcher Sean Minnick came in for relief for the Bombers. He got off to a rocky start immediately throwing a wild pitch, resulting in yet another run for the Continentals. He was able to get out of the inning but not without some damage. The Continentals scored two more runs courtesy of a Rada RBI and a passed ball. The Bombers led 12–11 heading into the bottom of the eighth.
What seemed to be a blowout game was now high stakes as the final inning loomed. Bombers sophomore pitcher and outfielder Conor Burns was forced to step in. He said while as a closer it could be easy to relax when the score is lop-sided, he always makes sure he is staying ready in case he is called upon.
“You just always gotta be ready every moment to be called on and when you’re called on then you gotta go out there and perform and that just had to happen,” Burns said.
Continentals junior left fielder Quinn Perkins led off with a fly ball to left. Fabbo had to run in on the ball, he layed out and made a diving catch. However, the umpire who was further away from the play, standing at first base, overturned the original call of an out. The next batter walked, bringing Sattinger to the plate. Sattinger layed down a beauty of a bunt down the third base line. The play at first base was close, but the umpire called Sattinger out. However, once again the umpires overturned this call. This left the bases loaded with no outs.
Burns said that while the calls were frustrating, they were the calls that were made and he could not let the past dictate the future.
“You know the plays already been made and just focus on the batter at hand and try and get that ground ball, turn two…” Burns said.
Burns certainly did just that as he forced a ground ball to junior shortstop Riley Brawdy. Brawdy short-hopped the throw home but Pugliese came up with a great scoop, recording the out. Burns was then able to strike out the next hitter and secured a groundout to put the game to bed.
The Bombers will next play at 12 p.m. April 13 at Freeman Field against the Vassar College Brewers.
