CORTLAND, N.Y. – Ryan Flansburg (Queensbury) allowed four hits and two walks and struck out seven over six scoreless innings as Cortland defeated visiting Union College, 8-1, in the nine-inning opening game of a non-league doubleheader. The Red Dragons completed the sweep of the Dutchmen with 10-5 win in the seven-inning second game behind a five-RBI performance from Ben Rhodes (Amsterdam).
 
Cortland and Union played for only the second time in their history, and the first since Cortland defeated Union, 3-1, in a 1979 ECAC playoff game.
 
Cortland (11-3) was scheduled to host St. John Fisher on Sunday, but that doubleheader has been canceled. The Red Dragons will return to action with a makeup home doubleheader versus New Paltz on Thursday at 1 p.m.
 
Cortland 8, Union 1
 
Flansburg, now 2-0, allowed runners to reach scoring position just once over his six innings. Union loaded the bases in the fifth, trailing 2-0, on two-out singles by Joey Palko and Matt Toy and a Jack Koch walk. Flansburg, however, who had struck out the first two batters of the inning, got out of the jam with another strikeout. Mike Hennessy (Smithtown/Smithtown East) gave up one run on two hits with one strikeout over two innings and Matt Funk (Pine Plains) allowed one hit and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning.
 
Cortland reached Union starter James Salemme for a run in the second when James Varian (Hopewell Junction/Trinity-Pawling) led off with a double, went to third on a groundout and scored on a passed ball. The lead grew to 2-0 in the fourth on a Rhodes walk, a Varian double and a Mat Bruno (Rye) one-out RBI single.
 
The Red Dragons struck for four runs in the fifth on a Colin BeVard (Syracuse/West Genesee) RBI single, a Varian RBI double, and a throwing error on a grounder to the pitcher that allowed two runs to cross. Paul Franzese (Somers) and Bruno hit back-to-back doubles in the seventh to push the lead to 7-0.
 
Union broke up Cortland's shutout bid in the eighth when Sebastian Pike doubled with one out, went to third on a balk and scored on Colin Kelly's sac fly. Cortland finished the scoring in the bottom of the eighth on a Franzese RBI groundout.
 
Varian finished 3-for-4 with three doubles, Bruno was 2-for-4 with a double, walk and two RBI, and Scott Giordano (Croton-on-Hudson/Croton-Harmon) was 2-for-5. Rhodes walked three times and scored twice. Palko finished 2-for-4 for Union.
 
Cortland 10, Union 5
 
Union (2-2) grabbed a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on a Kevin Chaimowitz sac fy and a Jack DiNanno RBI single. Cortland, however, responded in the bottom of the second by scoring seven times and sending 12 batters to the plate. The first three batters walked and Andrew Michalski (Buffalo/St. Francis) hit a two-run single to tie the game. Matthew Krafft's (Cornwall) bunt single loaded the bases, and Giordano gave Cortland the lead with a sac fly to left. BeVard was hit by a pitch to re-load the bases, and Rhodes unloaded them with a three-run double to left center. He eventually scored on a Franzese RBI single.
 
The Red Dragons' three-run fifth featured a Giordano RBI single and a Rhodes two-run single. Union scored three in the top of the sixth on a two-out, three-run double by Koch.
 
Five Cortland players finished with multiple hits. Giordano was 2-for-2 with a walk and two RBI and Franzese went 2-for-3 with a walk and RBI. Rhodes, Krafft and Michalski each ended 2-for-4, with Michalski and Krafft scoring two runs each. Rhodes ended with five RBI and Michalski drove in two. DiNanno went 2-for-3 with an RBI for Union.
 
Spencer Weyand (Hornell), the first of five Cortland relievers, earned the win as he was the pitcher of record when the Red Dragons took the lead. He gave up only one hit, walked two and struck out three in two and a third scoreless innings. Liam Krasney (Greenville) hurled two scoreless innings, allowing only one hit.