April 5, 2007
Box Score
Brooklyn, NY - Kyle Morrison (Middlesex, NJ / Immaculata) struck out seven over 7.0 innings while the Wagner (5-15; 1-0 NEC) offense pounded out 14 hits in an easy 13-3 victory over LIU (5-14; 0-1 NEC) in the conference-opener for both teams earlier today at LIU Field.
The freshman hurler was outstanding over his seven innings of work yielding just two runs on four hits and three walks to pick up his first collegiate win and improve to 1-5 on the young-season.
The first three Wagner-hitters, freshman Damian Csakai (Freehold, NJ / Freehold), senior Joseph DiGeronimo (Hawthorne, NJ / Hawthorne) and sophomore Peter Delleani (Manalapan, NJ / CBA), set the tone for the day combining to go 9-16 with seven RBI, six runs, two doubles, a triple and a home run.
Csakai showed the Blackbirds why he is the reigning NEC Rookie of the Week with a lead-off triple. After a pair of outs classmate Vin Avella (Matawan, NJ / CBA) brought him home with a line-drive single up the middle to give Wagner the lead 1-0.
The Seahawks were right back at it in the second when they loaded the bases with one out on a pair of walks to senior Ed Sudol (Wallington, NJ / Wallington) and sophomore Chris Drechsel (Cranford, NJ / Cranford) sandwiched between a single from freshman Kevin McDonnell (Bristol, CT / Avon Old Farms). Csakai then continued his hot hitting with a single up the middle, plating Sudol and McDonnell. Senior Joseph DiGeronimo (Hawthorne, NJ / Hawthorne) followed with a RBI double down the left field line, scoring Drechsel. Delleani came to the plate next and crushed a three-run home run over the right-field fence go give the Green & White an insurmountable 7-0 lead. Wagner would push the lead out to 8-0 in the third as Drechsel hit a sacrifice fly with the bases full to bring in Sudol.
LIU dented the scoreboard for the first time in the fourth when Orlando Cruz hit a two-run home run to cut the lead to 8-2. Morrison was undaunted by the mini-threat as he retired the next three batters in order. The Seahawks immediately answered in the fifth when Sudol greeted reliever Andrew Yawger with a first-pitch home run deep over the right-field wall. Wagner would get the other run back in the top of the seventh when freshman Joe Conforti (Staten Island, NY / Farrell) singled home McDonnell to push the score to 10-2.
Morrison put it in cruise control over his last three innings yielding just two hits, one in the fifth and one in the seventh, before giving way to the bullpen.
The Seahawks put three more runs on the scoreboard in the top of the eighth to go up by their largest margin of the game at 13-2. The Blackbirds scored once in the eighth but that would be it as the Green & White rolled to the 13-3 victory.
DiGeronimo led the charges going 4-6 with two doubles and two runs while extending his NEC-best hitting streak to 22 games. Delleani was 2-5 with a home run and four RBI and Csakai was 3-5 with two RBI and two runs to round out the top-performers for the Seahawks.
Staten Island native Kenny Cedel struck out seven and gave up seven runs over 4.0 innings to fall to 0-3 on the year.
The two teams return to action tomorrow with a doubleheader starting at 12 pm.
