Myrtle Beach, S.C. - The Albertus Magnus College baseball team's four-game win streak ended Wednesday with a doubleheader loss to the Wildcats of Penn College of Technology during the Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Falcons dropped the opener by a 3-2 final score, before falling in the nightcap, 5-3.
THE BASICS
FINAL: (G1) Penn College 3 | Albertus 2
RECORDS: Albertus (5-2) | Penn College (3-5)
BOX SCORE
HOW IT HAPPENED
Penn College took control of the pitching duel in the opener by scoring twice in the top of the first inning. Colton Riley opened the game's scoring, plating one with an RBI double to right field. In the next at-bat, Riley scored on an error by the Falcons' third baseman to give the Wildcats a 2-0 advantage.
Neither team got on the board again until the fifth inning, when Penn College had a bases-loaded opportunity. With three on and no outs, Ricardo Torres (New Haven, Conn.) got out the jam by allowing just one run on a ground out. A double play in the next at-bat left the score at 3-0 Penn College, heading into the bottom of the fifth.
Albertus got on the board in the second half of the frame with a Brendan Clark (North Haven, Conn.) homer to left, his second of the season. With the long ball, the Falcons cut the deficit to two, 3-1, heading to the sixth.
The Falcons scored again in the bottom of the seventh inning, drawing the margin to 3-2 with a Elijah Spataj (Cheshire, Conn.) home run to left. With Spataj's lead-off blast, Albertus looked primed to force extra innings. The Wildcats had other ideas, however, as Penn College forced three straight outs to end the game.
On the pitching mound, Torres started and logged 6.0 strong innings with two earned runs and three strikeouts. Justen Rodriguez (Waterbury, Conn.) came in for the ninth inning, allowing no runs with one strikeout.
KEY STATS
• The Falcons' four hits yesterday were spread across four different players.
• Spataj and Brendan Clark both logged a hit, a run and an RBI on solo home runs.
• Both teams tallied one error in the game.
• The Falcons' pitchers recorded four strikeouts.
NOTEWORTHY
• Torres went 6.0 innings in his first career appearance.
• Spataj paces Albertus with four home runs this year.
• Brendan Clark is up to two homers this season.
THE BASICS
FINAL: (G2) Penn College 5 | Albertus 3
RECORDS: Albertus (5-3) | Penn College (4-5)
BOX SCORE
HOW IT HAPPENED
For the second consecutive game, the Wildcats went ahead in the first inning. After Jake Wagner led off the bottom of the inning with a triple, Jacob Carles drove him home with a sacrifice fly to center to give Penn College a 1-0 advantage.
Albertus knotted the score at 1-1 in the top of the third on a Brandon Clark (Cheshire, Conn.) bomb to straight center field. The senior catcher tied Spataj with a team-leading four home runs this year.
The Wildcats built a 4-1 advantage in the fourth with a three-run inning. Brittan Kittle smacked a solo shot to kick off the scoring, while Kolten Smith drove home two with a double to right.
Eduardo Pena (Hamden, Conn.) drew the Falcons' margin to 4-2 with his first homer of the season. The sophomore outfielder turned on a pitch in the top of the fifth, sending it over the left field wall.
Following another score by the Wildcats, Albertus trailed by a 5-2 score heading into the decisive seventh inning. Pena began the ninth with a walk, which preceded a pair of outs for the Falcons. With two outs, Brandon Clark continued his stellar day with an RBI double to cut the score to 5-3. Unfortunately for the Falcons, this stood as their final run of the game, as a ground out from the next batter ended the bout.
Liam Donaldson (Oxford, Conn.) started the game and went 5.0 innings with four runs allowed. Alan Stinson (Watertown, Conn.) tossed the sixth, allowing one run with a strikeout.
KEY STATS
• Albertus tallied four hits in the nightcap, with Brandon Clark leading the way with two of the hits.
• The Falcons matched the opener with two homers in the second game.
• In addition to homering, Pena also scored twice.
• Donaldson struck out two batters in 5.0 innings of work, allowing four earned runs.
• Stinson allowed one run in 1.0 innings with a strikeout.
NOTEWORTHY
• For the year, Albertus is up to 16 homers.
• Brandon Clark tied Spataj for the team-lead in home runs with four.
• Brandon Clark is now second on the team with 11 RBI this season.
• Chris Imbarrato (Township of Washington, N.J.) collected his first hit of the year in the nightcap.
