Selinsgrove, Pa. – Keystone College scored three runs in the first inning of Thursday's non-conference baseball contest at Susquehanna University and never trailed in a 6-3 victory in a game that was called after eight innings due to darkness.
The Giants improve to 9-6 after avenging a 9-5 setback suffered to the River Hawks (9-9) on March 17 in Florida.
Keystone got off to a good start on Thursday by taking a 3-0 lead in their first at-bats of the game. Brady Barr (Bowie, Md./Bowie) drove in Anthony Ferrezza (East Islip, N.Y./East Islip) with a single before Billy Nelson (Moscow, Pa./North Pocono) came home when Sebastian De La Cruz (Port Jervis, N.Y./Port Jervis) grounded into a double play. Bray Curreri (Eldred, N.Y./Eldred Central) then doubled down the left field line to bring in Brendan Long (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier) with the Giants' third run.
Susquehanna cut its deficit to 3-2 in the bottom of the first on a two-run single by Cory Fallon, but Keystone got those runs back in the visitors third as Eric Drzewiecki (Hellertown, Pa./Phillipsburg) singled home Long before Ryan Callahan (Highland Mills, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) drew a bases-loaded walk to give the Giants a 5-2 advantage.
The River Hawks cut their deficit to 5-3 on a solo home run by Zach Leone in the home fifth, but Keystone closed out the scoring in its next trip to the plate as Nelson launched a home run of his own down the left field line to close out the scoring.
Troy Terzi (Wallingford, Conn./Notre Dame ) improve to 3-0 on the season after allowing three runs on four hits while striking out four batters in six innings of work. Gerry Gonzalez (Manhattan, N.Y./Progress) pitched a scoreless seventh inning with two hits against and one K while Tyler Widitz (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg) picked up his first save of the spring with a scoreless eighth inning in which he yielded one hit.
Curreri led Keystone with three hits while Ferrezza and Barr had two hits apiece for the Giants, who held a 12-7 advantage in hits for the game.
Bobby Klatt took the loss for Susquehanna after surrendering five runs on six hits in 2.1 innings before the River Hawks turned to four arms out of the bullpen to close out the game.
Leone and Justin Miller had a pair of hits apiece in the loss for the hosts.
Keystone is scheduled to host Centenary University on Saturday afternoon in a Colonial States Athletic Conference doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m. at Christy Mathewson Field in La Plume.