Baseball Earns a Doubleheader Split at Norwich

Photo by: Zaida Velazco
Photo by: Zaida Velazco

Northfield, Vt. – The Albertus Magnus College baseball team split a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader versus Norwich on Saturday afternoon at Garrity Field.

The host Cadets (2-19, 1-3) took the opener, 5-3, and the Falcons (8-15, 2-4) held on for a 3-1 victory in the nightcap. The triumph in game one was the second straight at home for Norwich, while Albertus Magnus earned its second straight split in GNAC play.

Game One
Norwich broke a 3-3 tie with a single run in both the fourth and fifth innings. Down the stretch, the Cadets were able to get out of jams in the sixth and seventh frames, highlighted by a game-ending double play on flyball to center.

On the bump, junior hurler Christopher Rivera (New Britain, Conn.) went the distance for the Falcons and was saddled with the loss. Rivera allowed five runs (three earned) and fanned four hiters, while scattering seven hits. For the Cadets, Brian Whaley tossed the first five innings to earn his second win of the spring and Brian Baker worked a scoreless seventh for his second save of the spring.

At the dish, the Falcons saw seven different players record hits.

Norwich plated single runs in each of the first five frames. The runs the hosts plated in the first and third stanzas were both unearned.

Albertus Magnus got on the board in the third as senior infielder Tyler Robertson (Cheshire, Conn.) recorded an RBI groundout and later classmate Ted Gravel (Morris, Conn.) laced a run-scoring double to right field.

The Falcons pushed across another run an inning later courtesy of an RBI triple off the bat of Robertson that brought leadoff hitter Derwin Nunez (Bridgeport, Conn.) racing home.

Game Two
In the finale, junior pitcher Jon Criscio (East Haven, Conn.) tossed a complete game and allowed just one unearned run for the Falcons to earn his first win of the year. Criscio scattered just four hits and struck out four batters. The 5-10 righty set the side down in order in the first, third, sixth and seventh innings.

Freshman outfielder Dean Gullo (Northford, Conn.) led the offensive charge for the guests with two hits, one run scored and one RBI.

AMC opened the scoring in the third thanks to an RBI single up the middle by Robertson. An inning later, Albertus Magnus stretched its lead to 2-0 following a run-scoring base hit to right by Gullo.

Norwich scored its lone run in the game in the home half of the fifth, taking advantage of a Falcon miscue to pull within one.

The Falcons closed the scoring in the game and added an insurance run in seventh courtesy of a sacrifice fly to ceter by Gravel.

Albertus Magnus closes out a weekend full of GNAC play tomorrow, April 17, with a home doubleheader versus Anna Maria that is slated to get underway at noon. The Falcons swept the AMCATS in the Bay State last spring.

For the latest information on the baseball team and Albertus Magnus athletics, follow AMCAthletics on Twitter and visit AlbertusFalcons.com.