Scranton Lions Baseball Drop Twin Bill to Conference Foe Brandywine

By: Ross Turetsky, Penn State Scranton Athletics

On Thursday evening, playing under the lights at the Maple Zone, the visiting Penn State Scranton Lions baseball squad dropped both ends of their road doubleheader to Penn State Brandywine by the scores of 5-2 and 16-2 respectively, as they kicked off their crucial conference schedule. With the pair of losses, Scranton sees their overall record move to 2-10 and 0-2 in the all-important conference play.

In game one, Scranton lost a tight 5-2 decision, as Brandywine scored two runs in the bottom half of the first inning, two more in the second, and a big insurance run in the fifth frame to capture their three run home triumph. Meanwhile, Scranton scored a run in the top of the first inning and one in the fifth to account for their two runs in the contest. Overall Brandywine led big in the hit department by a 9-2 margin in the seven inning affair.

Scranton's two hits came from a nice double by freshman shortstop Alex Pagotto, who went 1-2 at the dish, scoring a run, walked once, and stole a base to boot, to go along with senior center fielder Mark Longo's base hit, on his 1-2 performance at the plate with a run scored. The road warrior Lions two RBI in the ball game came from an RBI groundout in the first inning by sophomore first baseman Zach Benson to score Pagotto and give Scranton the early 1-0 advantage and freshman right fielder Ryan Vinton's RBI sac fly to center field to score Longo in the fifth to cut the deficit to 4-2.

Meanwhile, Brandywine had a trio of players put up impressive multi-hit performances in the matchup, as senior center fielder Cam Baughman, junior third baseman Evan Abegg, and fellow junior, catcher Mike DeGirolamo set the pace for their ball club. Baughman led the way with a game-high three hits, as he went 3-4 at the dish, scoring twice, and tallied an RBI. Abegg was 2-3, hammering a double, walking once, and chipped in with an RBI as well. Last but certainly not least, DeGirolamo also was 2-3, with an RBI, and stole a base for good measure.

For the pitching side of things, Scranton had a quality start on the mound from their sophomore hurler Mike DeWolfe, as he tossed five innings, only allowing three earned runs, walked a trio, gave up eight hits, and fanned two Brandywine batters while keeping his team in the ball game throughout. Senior Justin Craigg, who also starred on the basketball team this year, pitched the last inning in relief of DeWolfe and did not give up any runs, while just surrendering one hit, and walked a pair. Meanwhile, Brandywine had junior right-hander Connor Thompson toe the slab and he went the distance, pitching a stellar complete game seven inning victory, only allowing one earned run, two hits, one walk, and struck out two Scranton hitters.

In the game two nightcap, Brandywine scored early and often, as they put up a robust nine runs in the bottom of the first inning, one in the second, three in the third, and another three in the fourth, as they cruised to their dominant 14 run triumph in just five innings of play. Scranton's runs came with one in the top of the first to take the early advantage, and one in the fourth to wrap up their scoring efforts. The powerful Brandywine offense also out slugged Scranton in the hit department by a 14-3 margin.

Scranton's three hits were spread out amongst Benson, Longo, and Craigg, as they each recorded a hit apiece in the showdown. Benson kicked-off the scoring in the first with a sweet RBI single to right field to drive home DeWolfe and give his squad the early 1-0 lead. The Lions other RBI came in the top of the fourth when Vinton put the ball in play and reached base on an RBI fielder's choice that scored Longo.

Meanwhile, Brandywine had a well-balanced offensive attack, as they had an awe-inspiring four players put up multi-hit performances in the nightcap. Freshman outfielder Ryan Snyder was a flawless 2-2 at the plate, both hits being doubles, drove in a game-high three runs, walked once, and scored twice. Senior second baseman Nick Wright also was a perfect 2-2 at the dish, as he scored a pair of runs, walked once, had an RBI, and stole a base to boot. Sophomore right fielder Shawn Webb was 2-3, scoring twice, and drove in one. Finally, DeGirolamo also was 2-3, scored two runs, had an RBI, and added a stolen base for good measure.

On the pitching side of things, Scranton started freshman hurler John Paffenroth, as he took the loss on the mound in a tough three innings of work. Fellow freshman Alex Ferguson came in relief of Paffenroth and tossed the final inning for his club, only allowing one earned run, and one hit in the effort. Meanwhile, Brandywine's freshman right-handed starting pitcher Jaylen Bryant earned the complete game victory with his quality five innings on the bump, only allowing two earned runs, two walks, a trio of hits, and fanned seven Scranton batters in his outing.

Now second-year head coach Collin Ferguson and his 2-10 Penn State Scranton baseball squad will look to snap their four game losing streak on Friday, when they will be the home team, due to weather, playing on conference foe Penn State Brandywine's home field at the Maple Zone in an instant rematch doubleheader under the lights, with first pitch scheduled for 5pm. Head coach Vinny Gallo and his Brandywine ball club, who with their doubleheader sweep on Thursday improved their overall record to 10-7 and 2-0 in the crucial league play schedule, will look to extend their four game winning streak in their next showdown against rival Scranton.