GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – The Pace University baseball team was unable to hold on to an early lead on Wednesday, and dropped an 8-3 decision to Adelphi University in a Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division matchup at Bonobo Field. The Setters fall to 24-17 overall and 9-5 in the Southwest Division, while Adelphi improves to 21-19 and 9-5.
Pace took the first lead of the game in the top of the first. Junior center fielder
John Kukura (New City, NY/Clarkstown South) reached base on a throwing error by the third baseman, and advanced to second on the play. He took third on a wild pitch later in the inning, and then scored on a ground out by sophomore left fielder
Michael Gulino (Meriden, CT/Maloney) to take a 1-0 lead. Adelphi tied the game in the bottom of the inning on a sacrifice fly by first baseman Robert Vani.
The Setters had two down in the fourth before senior catcher
Frank Mayo (Middletown, NY/Minisink Valley) was hit by a pitch to keep the inning going. Senior third baseman
Nick LoBello (Baldwin, N.Y./Baldwin) took advantage of the extra opportunity, and smacked a double to left-center, scoring Mayo from first to take a 2-1 lead.
Pace caught a break to start the fifth, as a single for graduate shortstop
Brett Bittiger (Saylorsburg, PA/Pius X) to lead off the inning ended up with him standing on third after an error by the right fielder. Senior second baseman
Andrew Coffey (Greenwich, CT/Old Avon Farms) tried to bring him in on a suicide squeeze, but the Panthers got Bittiger into a rundown, tagging him out before he could score. With Coffey now on second, junior first baseman
Garrett De Lotto (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug) stroked a single to left-center, plating Coffey to make it 3-1 in favor of the Setters.
With the bases loaded and one away in the home half of the fifth, right fielder Alex Zykoff hit a sacrifice fly to center, getting the Panthers back within a run. Vani then hit a three-run homer to left-center, putting Adelphi up, 5-3. In the seventh, Zykoff hit the Panthers' second three-run blast of the game to reach the eventual final score of 8-3.
Reliever Michael Demarest got the win for Adelphi after tossing 2.1 scoreless innings in relief. Senior starter
Michael Forgione (West Harrison, NY/Harrison) took the loss on Wednesday after allowing five runs in five innings.
De Lotto went 2-for-3 with an RBI in Wednesday's divisional matchup. Bittiger hit 2-for-4 with a double. Coffey batted 1-for-4 with a run scored.
Vani had four RBIs in a 1-for-3 outing for the Panthers. Zykoff hit 2-for-2 with four more RBIs. Second baseman Steven Withers scored two runs after going 1-for-3, while shortstop Michael Stack scored once in a 2-for-3 effort.
Pace takes a break from conference play this weekend, as the Setters will play four non-conference games. They will begin the weekend with a Friday afternoon matchup against Bloomfield College at Peter X. Finnerty Field. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m.
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