HOBOKEN, N.J. (March 9, 2018) – Junior Donny Gherardi and sophomore Patrick Rood each delivered two-out run-scoring hits, junior Danny Poidomani struck out eight over 8 1-3 shutout innings, and the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team returned to the win column with a tidy 6-0 shutout of New Paltz University in non-conference action at a chilly Dobbelaar Field Friday.
Junior Matthew Pasko walked twice, stole a base, and scored a pair of runs and senior Tommy Baronner had an RBI single as the Ducks improved to 2-4 on the year. Stevens has strung together 21 straight scoreless innings over its last three meetings with the Hawks.
Stevens scored five of its six runs with two outs.
Nick DePietro and Zach Warenius each had two hits for New Paltz, who fell to 2-2.
"The story today was timely hitting," commented head coach Kristaps Aldins. "Our first five runs were all scored with two outs and the rallies in the 5th and 6th came with two outs and nobody on. Getting hits in the these situations are momentum changers and we were on the right side of that momentum today. Certainly Danny pitched a great game and allowed our offense to do its work."
With both starters engaged in a scoreless duel, it was Stevens that broke through first. Conor Donachie (0-2) hit freshman Thomas Paulich to lead off the third. The Ducks moved the rookie infielder to third with a pair of groundouts. Gherardi belted Donachie's first pitch into center for a run-scoring double. DePietro attempted to make a leaping grab of the Oradell, New Jersey native's drive, but collided with wall allowing Paulich to score with the first run of the game.
Stevens found similar success with two outs in the fifth. Baronner led off with single up the middle but was erased when Gherardi lined into a double play. Freshman Nathan Zuckerman rallied from an 0-2 hole to work a full-count walk. Senior Alex Detweiler turned on Donachie's 0-1 pitch and doubled down the left field line. Rood followed, and continued his hot start to the season with a stinging shot that shortstop Ryan Frost was able to knock down but couldn't corral to make a play. The hard-hit infield single easily scored Zuckerman and Detweiler beat the throw home to give the Ducks a 3-0 lead. The Huntington Beach, California native leads the team with a .391 average and 7 RBI.
Donachie finished the day with three earned runs over 4 2-3 innings. The right-hander walked two, struck out two, committed two balks and hit Paulich twice.
Poidomani (1-0) didn't need any additional support. The left-hander retired nine of the game's first 10 batters in earning his first victory of the year. DePietro led the game off with a single, but was promptly picked off first base. Poidomani didn't allow another hit until the fifth. The Rochelle Park, New Jersey native extended his scoreless streak against New Paltz to 15 1-3 after a seven-inning shutout performance last season.
The Ducks added a pair of runs in the sixth to break the game open. Pasko worked a two-out walk off Brian LoRusso and promptly stole his fourth base of the season. Baronner walked and both runners scored on Gherardi's first career triple. The three RBI marked a new career high for the junior outfielder.
New Paltz had its best chance to get back into the game in the eighth. Julian Francisco singled to lead off the frame. Frost popped up to short and DePietro reached on a bunt single. The two singles gave New Paltz multiple baserunners for only the second time on the afternoon. After a groundout advanced both, the Stevens left-hander buckled down and induced a soft grounder back to the mound by Jake Williams to end the threat.
Stevens added an unearned run off Ryan Votypka in the eighth to round out the scoring.
Freshman Joseph Deitz recorded two strikeouts to close out the game.
Up Next: Stevens welcome Middlebury College to Dobbelaar Baseball Field for the first of two non-conference contests. The teams will meet on March 17 in Atlanta.
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