ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, NY — The RIT baseball team (28-7, 20-1 Liberty League) swept Bard in the first of two doubleheaders, at Honey Field on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers edged the Raptors 4-3 in game one, before exploding for an 11-2 rout in game two. RIT has now won seven straight games and 21 of its last 22 games.

"We played great defensively and had great pitching again from [Brian] Reed, [Stevie] Branche, [Jameson] Moran, and [Brett] Bouchard," said RIT head coach Rob Grow. "Our offense really came alive in the second game and we hope to continue playing this way on Sunday."
 
After scoring the first run of the game on an RBI ground out by Daniel Zeglen (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) in the first inning, the Tigers used a three-run fourth inning to take the first contest in the opener.
 
Will Gorman (Nassau, NY/Columbia) led RIT's bats, with a two-run home run, to go along with a double. The homer was his single-season program record tying eighth of the season and 25th of his career. Zeglen also had an RBI, while Navada Waterman (Coudersport, PA/Coudersport), Dom Scialabba (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick), and Jason Schulz (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) scored the other three runs. Scialabba, Schulz, Zeglen, and Brett Kajganich (North Royalton, OH/Holy Name) also each added one hit apiece.
 
On the mound, Brian Reed (Rochester, NY/Penfield) made the start, pitching four scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and striking out two batters for his seventh win of the season. Nick Claver (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) came in for the fifth inning, and struck out one batter, but allowed three runs on two hits. Brett Bouchard (Fairport, NY/Fairport) came in for the final two innings, allowing just two hits and no runs with two strikeouts, and picking up his team-best fifth save of the season.
 
For Bard, Adam Carafotes had all three RBIs, on a three-run homer in the fifth inning. Frank Ortega pitched the complete game for the Raptors, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits, to go with two strikeouts.
 
In game two, RIT's bats came alive. The Tigers took a quick 3-0 lead in the second inning, and added one score in the fourth, but opened the flood gates with six runs in the seventh inning. The Raptors avoided the shutout with two runs in the ninth inning.
 
RIT's offense was balanced across the board. Benjamin Terzini (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) and Kajganich each had a pair of RBIs, while Waterman, Patrick Mylott (Aurora, OH/Western Reserve Academy), Jason Schulz (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), Tommy Amuso (Webster, NY/McQuaid), and Mike Myers (Hamlin, NY/Brockport) each had one. Seven different Tigers registered hits, while seven different Tigers scored runs. Daniel Capra (North Salem, NY/North Salem) scored three times.
 
Stevie Branche (New Paltz, NY/New Paltz) made the start for RIT, pitching five innings of scoreless and hitless ball, striking out seven batters and grabbing his third win of the season. Jameson Moran (Geneseo, NY/Geneseo) came in for the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, and allowed just two hits and no runs, with four strikeouts. Mark Nozzi (Rochester, NY/McQuaid Jesuit) finished the game, pitching the ninth inning for the Tigers.
 
For Bard, JP Fisher and David Schlosser had RBIs, while Schlosser added two hits. Fisher and John Gonzalez scored for Bard. On the mound, Bard used five different pitchers. Carafotes started the game, going four full innings, but picked up the loss.

RIT's top four starters (Reed, Branche, Moran, and Zeglen) and Bouchard have combined to throw 41 consecutive innings of scoreless ball in Liberty League play. The Tigers have out-scored its opponents, 157-48 in league play and their pitchers have a 2.40 earned run average.
 
RIT now leads the all-time series between the schools, 9-0, and will look to take all four meetings with another doubleheader on Sunday to close out the regular season. The Tigers and Raptors will get underway at 11 a.m. from Honey Field. The Tigers, who clinched their first Liberty League regular season title, will host the league tournament next week, beginning on Thursday at Tiger Stadium.