PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Friday afternoon, the Pace University baseball team welcomed their fans to the Peter X. Finnerty Field for the 2024 home opener. The Blue and Gold fell in game one, 0-7 but rallied in game two and captured a 9-3 victory. The Setters improve to 2-4 on the season.  

Game One 

Patrick Gleason took the mound for the Setters in game one and tossed two scoreless innings before Mercy got to him in the third. Two runs crossed the plate in the inning to give the Mavericks a 2-0 advantage. The bats were quiet for the Setters in the early innings as only two batters reached base.  

In the next two innings, Mercy continued to add to their lead and after the fifth inning, the Setters trailed by six runs and failed to mount a comeback the rest of the way. Mercy took game one with a final score of 7-0.  

Mercy was led by the dominant pitching display from Nevin Scaperotti as he pitched 7.2 innings allowing no runs, and three hits while striking out seven.  

Game Two (Seven innings)

Game two was a much different story for the Blue and Gold. The Setters jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning after Dominic Rivara brought home the first run. Following a score on a wild pitch, senior captain Anthony Labita launched a triple into right-center to give Pace a 3-0 lead after the bottom half of the second inning.  

The Setters rallied again in the fourth starting with an RBI double from Matthew Franco down the left-field line. The next batter, Mason Baronian, drew a walk to give Pace two runners on with another chance to capitalize against Mercy. Matthew Rinaldi would deliver for Pace, driving home two runs with a sharp single down the right-field line. Pace took an 8-0 lead into the fifth after using an error by the Mavericks to tally another run before the inning's end.  

Pace would tack on one more run in the sixth, to ride a nine-run lead into the final inning. The Blue and Gold would allow three runs in the seventh, but it would not be enough for Mercy as Pace got their first win at home, 9-3.  

The Setters were led on the mound by Dan Brown as he tossed five scoreless innings allowing just one hit while striking out seven Mercy batters. At the plate, Pace's offense was highlighted by a productive performance from Rinaldi as the outfielder produced two RBIs on the day. Baronian continued his strong start for the Setters scoring two runs and drawing three walks.  

Up Next 

The Setters continue their four-game series against Mercy tomorrow with an 11:30 a.m. first pitch at Peter X. Finnerty Field.