March 3, 2019

Bard sweeps Brockport to open 2019 season

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ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. - The Bard College baseball team collected a pair of wins Sunday afternoon, topping SUNY Brockport, 4-3 in game one and 10-5 in game two, to open the 2019 season.

The Raptors struck first on the day with a pair of runs in the third inning. Jordan Myers scored Rory Maglich on a sacrifice fly, before Dillon Daine crushed a triple to right field during the next at-bat, which drove in Gunnar Schichtl and gave the Raptors an early advantage.

The Golden Eagles of Brockport (3-3) responded with an RBI single in the top of the fourth to cut the deficit to 2-1. After a scoreless fifth inning slowed the action, Brockport threatened in the sixth by loading the bases, before Kyle Zigner, who came into the game as a relief pitcher, was able to pitch out of the jam with third-out strikeout.

After the close call in the top of the inning, Chris Blake provided the Raptors with some much needed breathing room in the bottom half of the frame. The senior nearly smashed a two-run homerun to left field, missing the mark by just a foot, before settling for a double that scored Daine from first base. Two batters later, Esteban Rivera added a fourth Bard run on a single, giving the hosts a 4-1 advantage. 

Those insurance runs paid off huge in the top of the seventh, as Brockport scored twice in the inning to cut the lead to 4-3. Zigner was again able to get out of the jam however, thanks to another swinging strikeout, as the Golden Eagles left the tying run stranded at second. 

Bard's ace, Evan Richardson, earned the win in game one. The senior threw five innings, and allowed just one run on two hits. He also struckout three, while Zigner pitched the final two innings and collected the save. 

Ryan Chipman, Rivera and Maglich each tallied two hits in the opening contest. Anthony Eaton (Troy, NY) led Brockport with three hits in the effort.

In game two, it was the guests who started the action first, as they drove in three runs over the first three innings. 

Bard wasn't fazed though. The hosts quickly answered back in the bottom of the third with an offensive explosion, as they put up six runs in 12 at-bats in the frame. Frank Rybicki knocked in two RBIs on a single to get the scoring started. Spencer Checkoway earned an RBI walk, before Alex Luscher and Robert Arciola knocked in back-to-back RBI singles. 

The offense output continued into the fourth and fifth, as Bard added two more runs to go up, 8-3. Brockport got a run back in the sixth, but a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth pushed the Raptors' lead to 10-4. They went on to win the contest, 10-5.

Evan Matthews started the game for the hosts, making his collegiate debut. He pitched three innings, allowed three runs on four hits and collected two strikeouts. Meanwhile, senior Frank Ortega earned the win, following his three innings of relief work. He finished with one run allowed on five hits. 

Arciola and Myers powered Bard in the second contest, finishing with three hits, two runs and an RBI apiece. Meanwhile, Maglich added two hits, while Rybicki and Luscher each finished with two hits and two RBIs. 

For Brockport, Aaron Cook (Queensbury, NY) finished with two hits and two RBIs.