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Hamden, CT - Quinnipiac rallied from a 3-0 deficit with five first-inning runs en route to a 6-5 win over Wagner in today's second game at the QU Baseball Field while garnering a doubleheader split. Senior
Jon Lucas (Hackettstown, NJ / Hackettstown) led the way for the Green & White, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run and two RBI.
The Bobcats snapped an eight-game losing streak with the victory while improving to 13-20 and 10-12 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) as the Seahawks fall to 11-26 and 9-13 in the league.
Riding the momentum from their extra-inning victory in game one, Wagner plated three runs in the opening frame. Senior
Seth Boyd (Perth Amboy, NJ / Perth Amboy) reached via an error before junior
Eddie Brown (Edison, NJ / St. Joseph's (Metuchen)) was hit by a pitch. After a sacrifice bunt moved Boyd to third, the senior shortstop came around to score following a passed ball while junior
Tommy Higgins (Port Monmouth, NJ / Red Bank Catholic) moved to second. Senior
Kevin McDonnell (Bristol, CT / Avon Old Farms) then walked before Lucas delivered a RBI single, plating Higgins for the second run of the game. Junior
Nick Alfano (Coral Springs, FL / North Broward Prep) capped the scoring with a RBI single to right field, scoring McDonnell while giving the Seahawks an early 3-0 lead.
Quinnipiac rallied for five runs of its own in the bottom of the first while batting around. Ben Farina and Zak Palmer each singled before Mickey Amanti walked. Chris Migani cut the deficit to 3-1 when he forced in Farina after being hit by a pitch. The Bobcats trimmed the deficit to 3-2 on a Kyle Nisson RBI fielder's choice, scoring Palmer. After senior RHP
Dale Hering (Belle Mead, NJ / Montgomery) recorded the second out of the frame, Amanti tied the game when he scored on a fielding error while pushing Nisson to second base. After the runners moved to second-and-third on a failed pick-off attempt, Nicolas Civale delivered a two-run single to center field that was just beyond the grasp of freshman
Ian Miller (Downington, PA / Bishop Shanahan), allowing Nisson and Guerino to score as the pair capped a five-run frame.
Wagner drew to within one at 5-4 in the top of the third inning on Lucas' first home run of the year, a solo shot that was crushed deep over the right field fence.
Quinnipiac got that run back in the bottom of the fifth inning. Palmer led off with a single before moving to second on a pass ball. Amanti moved Palmer to third with a ground out before Hering struck out Migani. Unfortunately, Nisson collected the two-out RBI with a run-scoring single to center field, pushing the lead out to 6-4.
After an uneventful sixth inning for both teams, the Seahawks mounted a seventh-inning rally. McDonnell led off with an infield single before moving to third on a Lucas double, as the senior designated hitter reached out and poked a 0-2 offering to left center. RHP Spencer Kane then induced a ground out while holding the runners at second-and-third, junior
Hayden Hunter (Santa Monica, CA / Notre Dame) crushed a ball deep into the gap that Farina was somehow able to corral. On the play, McDonnell scored while pinch-runner
Dave Pepe (Fr., Caldwell, NJ / James Caldwell) moved to third base. Unfortunately, Pepe would be stranded 90 feet from home as Kane induced a game-ending ground out.
Hering (3-5) was the tough-luck losing pitcher, yielding six runs, three earned, on seven hits and a walk with four strikeouts over 6.0 innings.
Bobcat RHP Kevin Castodio (2-1) earned the win, allowing four runs, three earned, on five hits and a walk over 4.0 innings while Kane garnered his first save with 3.0 innings of one-run ball with two strikeouts.
Farina, Nisson and Palmer each recorded two hits, leading the way for a seven-hit Quinnipiac attack.
NOTES: Hering has now fired four-straight complete games ... Brown was hit in all four plate appearances after being drilled in his last at-bat in the first game ... He was one plunking off the NCAA record of five set by current Chicago White Sox outfielder and 2008 American Leaguer All Star Carlos Quentin, who was hit five times while playing for Stanford against Florida State on February 9, 2002 … Wagner had its chances in the second game, but stranded nine runners while going just 2-for-12 (.167) with runners in scoring position … 11 of the last 12 games between the teams at the QU Baseball Field dating back to 2005 have been decided by three runs or less … The teams will conclude their four-game series tomorrow with a 12:00 pm doubleheader.