ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College baseball fought back from an early two-run deficit and overcame a two-hour and two-minute weather delay due to numerous snow storms to defeat visiting Elmira College, 5-3, in an Empire 8 Conference contest on Sunday afternoon at Freeman Field. Ithaca is now 11-9 on the season and 4-4 in the Empire 8.

Sunday's game was scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., but 20 minutes prior to the start of the contest, a heavy snow storm rolled in and covered the infield. The storms continued to pop up over the course of the next two hours, which delayed the contest to a 3:02 p.m. first pitch.

Elmira immediately put the pressure on IC with a lead-off walk and a sacrifice bunt, which was thrown wide of first base to allow both Soaring Eagle runners to move up to second and third. A groundout to short brought in the first run of the contest and a sac fly pushed home another to give Elmira a 2-0 lead.

Ithaca got a run back in the bottom of the second inning on a sac fly by junior Garrett Snyder to drive in junior Adam Gallagher, who led off the inning with a single. Gallagher found his way over to third on a stolen base and a throwing error. The inning ended on the sacrifice fly as senior Domenic Boresta was retired at second base as the cut off was thrown back to the bag to nab Boresta.

The Soaring Eagles added a run in the top of the fourth on a two-out double to the right field fence that allowed a runner to score all the way from first base.

In the bottom of the sixth, Gallagher tied the game up at 3-3 with a two-run home run that snuck just inside the left field foul pole with two outs in the inning. Junior Sam Little was on first base at the time of the game-tying hit after reaching on a fielder's choice.

The Ithaca defense shined in the top of the seventh to keep the score deadlocked at 3-3. With one out in the inning, Elmira doubled down the right field line and tried to stretch it into a triple, but a perfect relay from S. Little to junior Jake Generali to junior Cam Fuoti gunned the runner out at third. The next batter for the Soaring Eagles walked and attempted to steal a few pitches later, but Gallagher threw the runner out at second to end the inning.

Ithaca took the lead in the bottom of the seventh, 5-3, with two runs on three hits. Fuoti led off with a double down the right field line and then Generali singled to left to set up runners on the corners. Freshman Jack Lynch drove in Fuoti on a fielder's choice to put IC up, 4-3.

After another fielder's choice, S. Little singled to left to keep in the inning alive and then back-to-back walks to Gallagher and freshman Alex Robinson brought in junior Andrew Bailey for the final run of the game.

Elmira would not go down without a fight, however, as the Soaring Eagles put two runners on in the top of the ninth inning. Nick Sampogna was called in to pinch hit and sent a deep drive to right-center, but junior Matt Carey corralled the ball on the warning track to end the contest.

Junior Jake Binder picked up his third win of the season in seven innings pitched. Binder allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits with three strikeouts. After a rough first inning in which he threw 20 pitches, Binder settled in and mowed through the final six innings of his outing in 65 pitchers.

Fellow junior Christian LaLomia closed out the game for his second save of the season in two innings of relief. LaLomia gave up two hits with one strikeout.

Gallagher was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with a walk, while eight other Bombers recorded a hit in the win.

IC hosts No. 10 Cortland on Tuesday, April 10 for a 4 p.m. non-conference game. The Bombers will then head to Houghton on Wednesday and host Rochester Thursday. The busy week wraps up with a three-game series at Utica on the 14th and 15th.