WEST HAVEN, Conn. (Mar. 18, 2016) - On Friday, the LIU Post baseball team scored two runs with two outs in the top of the ninth to force extra innings before beating University of New Haven, 8-7, in 10 innings at Frank Vieira Field in West Haven.
The Pioneers (8-8) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning when junior catcher
Thomas Asbaty (Randolph, N.J.) and senior first baseman
David Groeneveld (Centereach, N.Y.) drove in runs with back-to-back singles. Asbaty later came around to score on a wild pitch.
In the third, Groeneveld belted his second home run of the season, an opposite field shot, that made it a 4-0 game.
Later, in the fifth, freshman left fielder
Joe Piscitelli (Levittown, N.Y.) drove in Groeneveld with a sacrifice fly, giving the Pioneers a 5-0 cushion.
In the sixth, New Haven (4-8) pushed across two runs, making it a 5-2 game.
New Haven then broke out for four runs in the seventh to take a 6-5 lead.
The Chargers added a run in the eighth, but the Pioneers wouldn't go quitely.
With one out, sophomore shortstop
Joe Spitaleri (Levittown, N.Y.) beat out a bunt single. Asbaty followed with a double, putting runners on second and third. After Groneveld flied out, head coach
Mike Gaffney sent up sophomore
James Cohan (Syosset, N.Y.) to pinch hit. The lefty tripled over the head of the center fielder, driving in Spitaleri and Asbaty with the tying runs.
Freshman pitcher
James Varela (Levittown, N.Y.) worked a 1-2-3 ninth to send the game to extra innings.
In the 10th, freshman third baseman
Jimmy Mendyk (Massapequa, N.Y.) reached with a two-out single. He then stole second, setting the table for sophomore center fielder
Rob Andreoli (North Wantagh, N.Y.). With two strikes, the lefty singled to right, plating Mendyk with the go-ahead run.
Varela returned to the mound and retired the Chargers in order to seal it.
Andreoli finished 3-for-6 with an RBI and a run scored. Asbaty collected two hits, two runs scored an an RBI, while Groeneveld went 4-for-5 with two runs and two runs driven in. The first baseman finished a triple shy of the cycle.
Varela went 3.1 innings and allowed one earned run on two hits in his first appearance out of the bullpen. The righty struck out four to earn his second win.
Coach Gaffney and the Pioneers are back in action on Thursday (Mar. 24) when they begin East Coast Conference play against Molloy. The first pitch is set for 3:30 from the LIU Post Baseball Field in Brookville.