AUBURNDALE, Fla. — Keuka College senior John Rizzo (Auburn, N.Y. / Auburn) hit for the cycle in game one and followed that with a three-hit performance in the nightcap as Keuka College swept Juniata College in Florida on Friday.
Keuka College (3-3) won the opener against the Eagles 8-7 in eight innings on a walkoff single by Tyler Broderick (State College Pa. / Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy). The Green and Gold then took game two over Juniata by the score of 17-7.
Rizzo led the offense with eight hits on the day. The senior had three singles, two doubles, two triples, and a home run combined in the two games. Dan Bamann (Rochester, N.Y. / Irondequoit) had five hits on the day and Dakota Skinner (Waverly, N.Y. / Tioga) drove in four runs for the Wolves.
Keuka College 8 vs. Juniata College 7 – 8 innings
John Rizzo led off the bottom of the first for Keuka College with a solo home run to give the Wolves a 1-0 lead. They extended the lead with a pair of runs in the third. Jake Redding (Victor, N.Y. / Victor) came home on a Dakota Skinner sacrifice fly. Dan Bamann followed that with an RBI single, scoring Rizzo to make it 3-0.
Juniata College tied the game in the fourth with three unearned runs and then took a 4-3 in the fifth. Much like the third, Keuka College scored a pair in the bottom of the fifth on a sacrifice fly and single to reclaim a 5-4 lead. An unearned run tied the game in the sixth for the Eagles and the game would go to extra innings tied at 5-5.
The Eagles struck first in the top of the eighth with a two-run home run. Keuka College answered with a rally of their own in the bottom of the frame. Dakota Skinner provided an RBI single for the Wolves. Tyler Krowiak (Endwell, N.Y. / Seton Catholic) tied the game with a single later in the inning with an RBI single to tie the game. The next batter was Tyler Broderick. He singled on a 2-2 pitch to score Dakota Skinner and give the Wolves an 8-7 walkoff victory.
Lead Wolf: John Rizzo had a career game for the Wolves. The senior was 5-5 at the plate, hitting for the cycle, and adding a triple on top of that. He set a school record with 13 total bases.
Keuka College 17 vs. Juniata College 7
Hitting first in the top of the first inning, Keuka College took a quick 2-0 lead as Kyle Colegrove (Elkland, Pa. / Wiliamson) doubled to score Rizzo and Brooks Vertoske (Horseheads, N.Y. / Horseheads) singled him home for the 2-0 advantage. The Eagles got one back in the bottom of the inning, but the Wolves added to their lead in the second.
Dakota Skinner plated two for the Wolves with a single. He then scored on a triple by Dan Bamann and Kyle Colegrove plated Bamann with a single. Keuka got two more runs on an error as they led 8-1.
The margin was cut down to three runs, 8-5, going into the top of the fourth inning. The Wolves scored five in the inning on RBI hits by Bamann, Anthony Mashewske (Newark, N.Y. / Newark), Dave Verrett (Cicero, N.Y. / Cicero-North Syracuse), and John Rizzo. Keuka College carried that momentum to the 17-7 victory.
Lead Wolf: Dan Bamann followed up Rizzo's career performance in Game 1 with one of his own in Game 2. The junior finished a home run short of the cycle with a career-high four hits. His RBI triple was the first three-base hit of his career.
KC Notes:
- Friday was the first ever games between Keuka College and Juniata College in baseball
- Keuka College is now 14-10-1 all-time in extra-inning games
- It was the first home run of Rizzo's career
- 21 hits by Keuka College in Game 2 ties for the sixth most in a game in program history
- Kevin Franz (Vestal, N.Y. / Vestal) earned the win on the mound in Game 2. It was his 36th appearance in his career, tying for the most ever in school history
Up Next for Keuka College: The Wolves will face Colby College on Saturday in Florida in a doubleheader. Keuka college faced the Mules during their spring trip in 2015 and lost both ends of the doubleheader against them.