Walk Off Win and Balanced Effort Leads Centenary to Sweep of St. Joseph's Brooklyn

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HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. – A walk-off win in game-one and a complete team effort in game-two led the Centenary University baseball team to a doubleheader sweep of St. Joseph's College Brooklyn on Friday afternoon.

The Cyclones trailed 3-2 heading to the bottom of the seventh in game-one, but Paul Links' RBI triple tied the score and Nick Payne drew a bases loaded walk to give the home team a 4-3 win. Game-two saw the Cyclones pound out 14 hits, including seven doubles, en route to an 11-5 victory.

Game One Recap (Centenary Won 4-3):
Centenary took an early lead in this one as Cole Heitzman ripped a double to right center that scored Anthony Vassallo in the second.

The Bears took a 3-1 lead with a run in the third and two more tallies in the top of the fourth.

Centenary got one of those runs back in the bottom of the fourth as Heitzman reached on an error and Vassallo touched the plate on the play.

Both teams had their chances in the fifth and sixth innings but neither team was able to convert, and the game headed to the seventh with the Bears leading 3-2.

St. Joseph's had a runner reach third in the top of the seventh, but Scott Ducey was able to get the final out on a pop up.

In the bottom of the seventh Heitzman reached after being hit by a pitch. He was replaced by pinch-runner Chase Johnson. With one out, Links stroked a triple to left which allowed Johnson to score the tying run.

The Bears loaded the bases with intentional walks to Jon Fleck and Nicholas Gattuso. Payne worked a 3-1 count before drawing the walk that forced in Links with the game-winning run.

Ducey got the win for the Cyclones as he went the final inning and allowed just one hit. Justin Contay took the loss as he gave up one run on one hit and walked three in a third of an inning.

Links was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI for the Cyclones while Gattuso had two hits and reached twice via a walk. Vassallo finished with a hit and two runs scored.

Game Two Recap (Centenary Won 11-5):
The Cyclones got to work quickly in game-two as they plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the first. Gattuso had an RBI groundout and Vassallo had an RBI double.

St. Joseph's scored two in the second and one in the top of the third and grabbed a 3-2 lead.

Centenary answered with two runs in the bottom of the third for a 4-3 edge. Chris Hess had an RBI single and later came around to score on a wild pitch.

The Cyclones scored six runs in the bottom of the fourth and took a 10-3 advantage. Vassallo had a two-run double, Hess added a two-run single, and Johnson had an RBI double. Johnson capped the scoring in the frame as he touched the dish on a wild pitch.

The Bears scored a run in the fifth and made it a 10-4 game.

The Cyclones answered right back as Brandon Smith's RBI double scored Ashton Levy.

St. Joseph's got one final run in the seventh as Centenary claimed the 11-5 win.

Matthew Gibbons earned the win in relief for the Cyclones. He went two innings and gave up one run on three hits with two strikeouts. Sean Henris took the loss for the Bears as he gave up two runs on four hits in two innings.

Vassallo paced a balanced attack for the Cyclones as he went 3-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Hess was also 3-for-3 with three RBIs and a run scored as eight other Cyclones recorded at least one hit in the contest.

Centenary is back in action on Monday, April 18 when it hosts Rosemont at 12 p.m.