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Box Score 2
BALTIMORE – Sophomore second baseman Vince Corbi (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) laced a double to left in the bottom of the seventh to bring in classmate Ian Glassman (Basking Ridge, N.J./Rutgers Prep) and break a 1-1 tie and junior Jon Cohn (Scottsdale, Ariz./Notre Dame Prep) pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, as the UMBC baseball team defeated Stony Brook 4-1, to split an America East doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field.
Stony Brook (19-29, 10-13 AE) edged UMBC (12-26, 6-17 AE) in the opener 5-3 behind a complete-game effort from Frankie Vanderka.
Corbi went 2-for-3 in the second game, with his second hit snapping the tie and driving in the game-winning run. The Retrievers added two more in the eighth to provide the final score line.
Freshman Mike Gomez (Nutley, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) limited and avoided damage through his 6.1 innings of work, giving up just one unearned run while scattering five hits. The right-hander was no-decisioned as he left in the seventh with the game tied.
The visitors struck first, scoring a run in the top of the third as Cole Peragine shot a two-out single up the middle to bring across Josh Mason who had singled with one away.
Seawolves' starter Brandon McNitt was in control early, working through the first three innings perfectly, seeing only nine batters. Junior Rob McCabe (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Joseph's Prep) led off the top of the fourth with a walk to break up the effort.
The Retrievers finally got to McNitt in the fifth with a two-out rally to tie the game. After a ground-out and pop to second, Glassman reached on a fielding error. Corbi then blooped a single to right, and Glassman, who had gone on the pitch, advanced all the way to third. Freshman Mark Esposito (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) followed with another looper just over the first baseman's head to push Glassman home and knot the score at 1-1.
Two innings later, Stony Brook looked like it might take the lead again as a walk and an error put two on with none out. A fly out moved the runner to third and knocked Gomez out of the game. Cohn (3-3) entered and promptly and induced two fly outs to end the threat.
UMBC cashed in immediately, with Corbi's double giving them their first lead of the game.
Cohn worked around a one-out hit-by-pitch in the eighth and his lineup once again backed the righty. Sophomore Jake Barnes (Annandale, Va./Annandale) got things going with a one-out single through the left side and came in to score as the next batter, freshman Kevin Lachance (Clifton, Va./Centreville), poked a triple down the right-field line. Junior Brandon Coluccio (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township/Brookdale CC) reached on an infield single and then sophomore Anthony Gatto (Hauppauge, N.Y./Smithtown West) hit a Baltimore chop with Lachance racing home from third.
Cohn prevented any dramatics, sending the Seawolves down in order in the ninth to earn the win.
Stony Brook opened the day with a 5-3 win in seven innings. Jack Parenty went 3-for-4 for the visitors and Vanderka threw his seventh complete game of the year.
After the Seawolves got one in the top of the first off of UMBC starter Mac Gill (Bethesda, Md./Walter Johnson), the Retrievers answered as Lachance scored on a throwing error as Coluccio singled on a swinging bunt.
Three innings later, the Retrievers took the lead with Coluccio reaching on another error, advancing on a wild pitch and ground out, and coming home on another miscue.
Stony Brook retook the lead for good in the very next frame as Kevin Courtney hit his sixth home run of the year, a two-run shot, to dead center.
The visitors added two more in the sixth and UMBC could only get one back in the bottom half to close out the scoring.
UMBC and Stony Brook will complete the three-game series with a single game on Sunday. The rubber game is set for a 12:00 p.m. start at Alumni Field and will be streamed live on UMBCRetrievers.tv.
DAWG BITES
- The teams combined to use only six pitchers in the two games on Saturday.
- Stony Brook has won three of the five games this season after taking two of three on Long Island earlier this year.
- Gatto also tripled in game two for the Retrievers. UMBC last hit two triples in a single game on Mar. 16, 2012 in a 17-8 win over Coppin State.
- Lachance went- 2-for-3 and McCabe went 2-for-4 game one to earn their team-leading tenth multi-hit games of the season.
- Gill has now thrown three consecutive complete games.
- UMBC is 1-3 in rubber games this spring.
- The Retrievers scored seven runs in the two games after scoring just two runs over the course of the last two weekend series.
