Tyler Becker tied the game with a 2-R double and scored the go-ahead run on a sac fly by Cooper Johnson
End of 6: Adelphi 4, Le Moyne 3 pic.twitter.com/BgPIdAKgHO
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 16, 2021
Over the course of six hours and two intense baseball games, it became increasingly clear that this best-of-three series was not ready to be settled just yet. Le Moyne and Adelphi, two teams battling it out like heavyweight prized fighters split the first two games of the NE-10 Southwest Division Final with Adelphi (18-13) taking game 1 and the Dolphins (16-8) staving off elimination in game 2. Game 3 will be today at 2:30pm at Adelphi with the winner advancing to next week’s championship against either Franklin Pierce or Southern New Hampshire at the higher seed’s location.
Game 1
Adelphi sent senior RHP Josh Rovner to the mound. The teams traded zeros in the first inning, but Adelphi took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI single by Cooper Johnson to score Mike Draskin. The run was produced by Draskin who walked, stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch.
In the third, Rovner pulled a houdini act escaping a bases loaded jam after allowing a single, two walks and falling behind on Derrick Miller 3-1 but he flied out to right and Rovner let out a primal yell showing how much this game meant.
In the fourth, though, the Dolphins got on the board after Ty Syta hit a one-out double and scored on Drew Fureno‘s RBI single. Rovner ran into some more trouble in the fifth inning when the leadoff batter walked and the next batter blooped a pop up to short right field that should’ve been caught but dropped in there and was scored a single. A sac bunt by Nick Nevins put both runners in scoring position and Derrick Miller scored both with a two-run double. RHP Andrew Williams came on in relief for Rovner, and he did a great job and struck out the next two batters to end the fifth.
That proved to be critical as the Panthers came scoring back in the sixth. Catcher Jack Ryan got things going with a double to left center, and Mike Draskin was hit by a pitch. Grad student Tyler Becker made it hurt with a two-run double down the left field line to score the game and get himself into scoring position. Becker advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored the go-ahead run on a sac fly by Cooper Johnson.
Adelphi added an insurance run on a sac fly by Becker in the seventh and another in the eighth on an RBI single to left by Kyle Olson.
Williams was lights-out in the relief with the lone exception of a leadoff HR by Nick Hansen in the ninth. He got the next two batters, but he was lifted after a two-out single to center. Kevin Glasser came on in relief and slammed the door with a strikeout to end the game. Andrew Williams was awarded the win. It put the Panthers one win away from the NE-10 Championship.
Final: Adelphi 6, Le Moyne 4
WP: Andrew Williams
S: Kevin GlasserGame 2 coming up in 30 minutes. Adelphi looking to punch their ticket to the NE-10 Championship pic.twitter.com/2XEOzZmQMv
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 16, 2021
Game 2
The second game was all Dolphins. The Panthers sent senior RHP Max Steele to the hill and he fired zeros for the first three innings before running into trouble and some arm pain in the fourth. After a single by Game 1 starter Andrew Roden, Steele misfired on a pickoff attempt to allow him to advance to second. Ty Syta drove him in with an RBI single through the right side. Steele’s day was done after 3.1 and he was replaced by senior RHP Troy Simpson. The Dolphins plated another run on an E6, but Simpson escaped allowing minimal damage.
The issue was the Panthers offense did not get going until the sixth inning. They stranded runners on 2nd & 3rd with no out in the fifth which was a perfect opportunity to get back in the game. Singles by Kyle Olson and Cooper Johnson followed by a passed ball put two runners in scoring position but Tyler Becker popped out and Anthony Cipri grounded out to first which resulted in a rundown between third and home and Olson was tagged out to end the inning.
In the sixth, Matt Alifano led off with a triple off the base of the fence in center and scored on an RBI single by Jack Ryan through the 5.5 hole. With runners on 1st & 2nd and nobody out it appeared the tides were turning but Mike Draskin grounded into a 6-4-3 DP and Jose Matos flied out to center.
The bats woke up in the seventh and put up a three-spot thanks to an RBI single to right by Tyler Becker, a sac fly by Anthony Cipri and an RBI single by Tim Feliz. During the next at bat, Feliz was caught stealing at second to end the inning. That was as close as the Panthers would get.
Max Parker went six innings, allowing four ER and was awarded the win while Sam DiGeorge earned the three inning save.
Game 3 will be today at 2:30pm. It will be interesting to see how the Panthers game plan for 27 outs with their pitching running thin. At this point in the tournament, there’s no more tricks up the sleeve it’s just guts & guile.
