Baseball Manages Split With Mercy; 3-1, 2-0
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Apr. 1, 2014) - The LIU Post baseball team came away with a split of Tuesday's East Coast Conference doubleheader against Mercy, dropping the first game, 3-1, but taking the nightcap, 2-0.
Despite the games being played at the Pioneers' (7-6, 1-1 ECC) home field in Brookville, N.Y., the Mavericks (7-9, 4-2 ECC) were the home squad on the scoreboard.
The green and gold jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the opener when junior
Anthony Brunetti (Bayville, N.Y.) singled home a run in his first at-bat of the year. After senior
Tom Tolan (Malverne, N.Y.) led off the game with a hit by pitch, centerfielder
Vinny Iacono (Nesconset, N.Y.) moved him over with a sacrifice bunt. With two outs, Brunetti lofted a single to left, giving the Pioneers a 1-0 edge.
Mercy answered with unearned runs in the second and fifth innings, and plated an insurance run in the sixth on a failed squeeze play. With a runner on third and one out, Sal Palumbo squared to bunt as Chris Salvo broke for home. Palumbo missed the bunt, but the ball got away from catcher
Thomas Asbaty (Randolph, N.J.), allowing Salvo to score.
Sophomore
Chris Anderson (West Islip, N.Y.) took the loss in the decision. He went eight innings, allowing just four hits and one earned run.
In the latter game of the twinbill, red-shirt junior
Mike Eckerle (Hewlett, N.Y.) took the mound looking to get the Pioneers back in the win column. And he did just that. The tall lefty continuously powered fastballs past the bats of the Mercy hitters, striking out 12 in the seven-inning contest.
Just as in the first game, LIU Post got on the board in the first inning. Brunetti reached on an error that allowed Tolan to come home safely. Later, in the fifth, Iacono reached on a fielder's choice that plated freshman
Brian Tinney (Farmingdale, N.Y.). Tolan and junior
Rick Alessi (St. James, N.Y.) led the green and gold with two hits apiece.
Eckerle improved to 4-0 on the season and has now struck out 39 batters over 24.0 innings of work.
The Pioneers return to action on Wednesday (Apr. 2), when they take on Mercy in the third contest of a four-game series. First pitch from the LIU Post Baseball Field is set for 3:30 p.m.