Baseball Drops a Pair at Limestone; 17-5, 8-5

2/19/2017 8:46:00 PM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

GAFFNEY, S.C. (Feb. 19, 2017) - The LIU Post baseball team came up short Sunday afternoon in a pair of losses to Limestone College at Founders FCU Stadium in Gaffney.

The Pioneers (1-3) dropped a 17-5 decision to the Saints (9-4) in the opener and lost by an 8-5 final in the nightcap.

Game #1: LIU Post 5, Limestone 17
In the first game of the doubleheader, the Saints jumped out to a commanding 14-0 lead. Junior pitcher Matt Orth (Asheboro, N.C.) collected four RBIs in the outburst, including a second-inning bases-clearing double. Junior first baseman Brennan Strovink (Rocky Point, N.Y.) and sophomore infielder Chase Allen (Sharpsburg, Ga.) drove in three RBIs apiece.

The Pioneers battled back with a five-run sixth, but that was as close as they came to completing a comeback. Senior catcher Thomas Asbaty (Randolph, N.J.) stroked a two-RBI single in the frame, while sophomore outfielder Joe Piscitelli (Levittown, N.Y.) and sophomore infielder Michael Greene (Stewart Manor, N.Y.) each had an RBI single.

Sophomore pitcher James Varela (Levittown, N.Y.) was saddled with his first loss of 2017 in the decision. He scattered nine hits, seven runs and three walks in three innings of work.

Greene and sophomore infielder Jimmy Mendyk (Massapequa, N.Y.) both went 2-for-3 in the opener. Senior infielder Matt Bowers (Staten Island, N.Y.) and sophomore outfielder Dave Brehm (Bohemia, N.Y.) added one hit apiece.

Game #2: LIU Post 5, Limestone 8
In the latter contest, the two teams were knotted at 2-2, until the Saints scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the third. Allen took the first offering from freshman pitcher Kurt Rissland (Franklin Square, N.Y.) out to left field to give Limestone a 3-2 advantage.

The Saints eventually widened their lead to 6-2, before the Pioneers rallied with a three-spot in the top of the sixth to close the gap to a one-run contest. Sophomore infielder Sal Geraci (Bayport, N.Y.) delivered an RBI double to left-center in the inning to score Greene, who later came home on a wild pitch.

One batter later, junior outfielder Rob Andreoli (North Wantagh, N.Y.) plated Geraci from third with an RBI single to make it a 6-5 game.

However, Limestone tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the last of the sixth to secure the victory. Senior outfielder Garrett Lowery (Dallas, N.C.) ripped a one-out RBI double down the left-field line and eventually scored on a wild pitch.

Rissland threw 3.1 innings of six-hit, six-run, four-walk, two-strikeout ball in his first collegiate start. Fellow freshman hurler Mike Stiles (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) allowed four hits, two runs and one walk and fanned three in 2.2 innings of work.

Head Coach Mike Gaffney and the Pioneers are back in action Thursday (Feb. 23), when they take on No. 6 Southern New Hampshire University at the 2017 Northeast Challenge in Myrtle Beach, S.C. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.