FREDONIA, N.Y. – Nationally sixth-ranked Cortland concluded the SUNYAC regular season with a doubleheader sweep at Fredonia. The Red Dragons won 9-2 in the seven-inning opener and completed a perfect three-game weekend series with an 11-4 victory in the nine-inning nightcap.
Cortland (31-8, 15-3 SUNYAC) reached the 30-win mark for the ninth straight season and the 19th time in the last 20 years. The Red Dragons will be the top seed and host for the four-team, double-elimination SUNYAC tournament May 3-5 and will play fourth-seeded Fredonia (16-14, 7-11 SUNYAC) in the opening game Friday at noon. Second-seeded New Paltz and third-seeded Oswego will play the second game Friday at 3:30 p.m.
Game 1: Cortland 9, Fredonia 2
Senior Mike Hughes (Albany) allowed six hits and two runs over five innings for his fifth win in six decisions this spring. He struck out two and did not anyone. Steven Kimmelman (Riverhead) and Cody Petre (Silver Springs/Letchworth) each threw a scoreless inning of relief.
P.J. Rinaldi (Bethel, CT) hit a three-run homer in the top of the first inning and finished 2-for-4. Anthony Iacomini (South Salem/John Jay-Cross River) was 2-for-3 with a walk, John Adornetto (Commack) went 2-for-4 with a walk and Max Rosing (Rockville Centre/South Side) was 2-for-5.
Jake Nowak was 2-for-3 and Brian Sheehan drove in two runs for the Blue Devils. Zachary Hugg took the loss after giving up nine runs, seven earned, in six and a third innings. He permitted 12 hits and four walks.
Cortland broke away from a tight 4-2 game with five runs in the top of the seventh. Rinaldi and Iacomini led off the inning with singles, followed by a Brian Barry (Nesconset/Smithtown East) RBI single and Ralph Keppler's (Rockville Centre/Oceanside) two-run double. Bryan Mistretta (Commack) added an RBI single and the final run scored on an error.
Game 2: Cortland 11, Fredonia 4
Senior Zachary Badanes (Syosset) threw five innings of two-hit ball for the victory and is now 4-0 on the season. He struck out five, walked two and gave up one run.
Cortland put up five runs in the top of the second on a Michael DeCarr (Syracuse/Westhill) RBI double, a Zack Graczyk (Carmel) two-run single and an Adornetto two-run triple. The Red Dragons scored on a double-play grounder in the third and once in the fourth on a Rosing RBI single to go up 7-1.
Ian Gallagher singled home a run for Fredonia in the sixth, but Cortland put two runs on the board in the seventh on a Donny Castaldo (Mount Kisco/Fox Lane) RBI single and a Bryan Marotta (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) RBI double.
Fredonia made things interesting with two runs in the seventh on a Conner Lorenzo two-run single that cut Cortland's lead to 9-4. Fredonia had runners on first and second with one out, but Tyler Scott (New Paltz) picked off a runner at second, then got a fielder's choice to end the inning. Barry singled in a run and eventually scored on a wild pitch to close the scoring in the top of the eighth.
Castaldo finished 3-for-4 with a walk, RBI and two runs scored and Graczyk was 2-for-2 with a walk, two RBI and two runs. Rinaldi went 2-for-4, while Kyle Barkley (Penn Yan) and DeCarr were each 2-for-5.
Sheehan was Fredonia's lone player with multiple hits as he finished 2-for-3 with a walk. Starter Angelo Sciandra allowed five runs in two innings for the loss.