A Quick Look
The SUNY Oneonta baseball team split their SUNYAC doubleheader against New Paltz Wednesday afternoon, dropping the first game 11-7 before taking the nightcap 14-8.

The Inside Story

Game 1.
Oneonta (15-17, 5-12 SUNYAC) jumped out to an early lead on a Dominic Lamonica RBI single in the top of the first, scoring Mickey Mullins. New Paltz responded with five runs in the bottom of the inning on four hits. The two teams would exchange runs in the second with Oneonta's run coming on a Mickey Mullins RBI groundout, plating James Zupo from third. The scoring continued in the third as both teams tallied another run. Jonathan Lezette got the inning started with a single to right before James Zupo brought him home with double into the right centerfield gap.

Trailing 7-3, Oneonta finally put a run on the board without a response from New Paltz in the fourth. With two out in the inning, Sean McGlynn earned a walk before Mickey Mullins smacked an RBI double to center to cut the deficit to 7-4. The Red Dragons continued to creep back into the game with two more runs in the top of the sixth to pull within a striking distance at 7-6. After a walk by Patrick McGee and an infield single by Mike Graves, Sean McGlynn drove in the first run with a single to center. Mickey Mullins followed with a single, scoring Graves from second base. Oneonta tied the game at 7-7 in the top of the seventh on an RBI single to left field by Patrick McGee. The Red Dragons excitement was short lived as the Hawks scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh to make the final score 11-7.

Christopher DiDomizio suffered the loss after giving up the four runs in the seventh inning on six hits. Ryan Steeg gave the Red Dragons a chance to rally with three scoreless innings of relief.

Game 2
Oneonta got off to a quick start with three runs in the top of the first, taking advantage of two New Paltz errors. With the bases loaded and two out, James Zupo reached on an error by the New Paltz third baseman, allowing Dominic Lamonica to scamper home with the first run. Patrick McGee made the error hurt even more when he smacked a two-run single to left field, scoring Jonathan Lezette and John Zinko to make it 3-0.

New Paltz got on the board in the bottom of the second on a Julian Francisco RBI single. After a scoreless third, Oneonta broke the game open with seven runs in the fourth. Patrick McGee got the inning started with a leadoff triple to center before Mike Graves drove him home with a single to right. The Red Dragons would eventually load the bases before New Paltz pitcher Mat Triebel uncorked a wild pitch, allowing Mike Graves to trot home from third. With two out in the inning John Zinko reached on another New Paltz error as Sean McGlynn scored to make it 6-1. With bases full of Red Dragons after a Jonathan Lezette walk, James Zupo smacked a grand slam to give Oneonta a commanding 10-1 advantage.

The Red Dragons would put the game out of reach when they scored three more runs in the top of the sixth. Oneonta got their first run of the inning when Mickey Mullins and David Deberardinis got things started with back-to-back doubles. With runners on the corners, Jonathan Lezette hit a two-run double into right to put the Red Dragons up 13-1.  Oneonta would add a run in the top of the sixth on another fielding miscue by the Hawks. New Paltz would get to the Oneonta bullpen late in the game as they scored seven runs in the final three innings, including five in the sixth.

Robert Ottaviano earned his fifth win of the season after allowing one run in four innings of work while striking out four Hawks. Patrick McGee went 5-for-6 on the day with three runs and three RBI. James Zupo had five RBI and two runs scored while Mickey Mullins had three hits including two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored.

What's Next
The Red Dragons will wrap up the three game series with New Paltz tomorrow at noon.