By Paul Gotham
GENEVA, N.Y. — Oneonta’s Outlaws have been chasing the Geneva Red Wings since the New York Collegiate Baseball League All-Star Break.
Thursday night at McDonough Park, the two teams traded roles.
Oneonta used the long ball and aggressive base-running to come from behind and defeat Geneva, 7-5 to take a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Division Championship Series.
Frank D’Agostino (Temple) greeted Geneva reliever Jalen Burks (Neumann) with a leadoff solo shot in a decisive eighth, and the Outlaws went from there.
“I fouled off a first-pitch fastball,” D’Agostino said. “I kinda knew he was going to come back and challenge me with another fastball. I changed my contact point and got out in front a little bit.”
The left-hander connected on his second round tripper of the summer and first of the playoffs to knot the game at five.
“I kinda hit it off the end a little bit,” the Monroe Township, NJ native said. “It got up in the air and kinda went.”
Carson Waln (Wofford) followed with a walk. The speedy Oneonta catcher, who entered the game as a pinch runner in the sixth, drew a pair of throws to first from Andrew Mercer (Southern Indiana) before one went in the dirt and allowed him to advance.
“We played a little small ball, and we got some great pitching from our bullpen,” Oneonta coach Joe Hughes stated. “We beat a very good team.”
Tyler Martis (Siena) moved the runner with a groundout, and Waln came home to score the eventual game winner on a dropped third strike.
“I got called into the game late and was just looking to do my part,” Waln commented. “Stay aggressive, that was the whole mentality. It was a big run for us.”
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Jaren Drummond (Grand Canyon) hurled two and two-thirds scoreless innings for the win. The left-hander struck out two, walked one and allowed two hits. Joseph Romero (University of Albany) picked up the save striking out two in an inning and a third.
Jimmy Hand (Northeastern) added an insurance run in the ninth with a two-out bomb over the scoreboard in right field.
“A couple of big, long balls really helped us out,” Hughes added.
After four scoreless innings, the teams opened up the offenses in the fifth.
The Outlaws put a three spot on the scoreboard. Ben Mauseth (Grand Canyon) ignited a two-out rally with a base hit to right center off Geneva starter Sam Tinkham (Grinnell). Taylor Jones (No. Georgia Coll & St. U) followed and drilled a 3-0 pitch into the right field corner for a triple.
“I didn’t have the green light,” Jones explained. “I knew that was probably going to be the only good fastball that I was going to get to hit. I had to take a chance. It got us started. It worked out.”
Daniel Fickas (USC-Upstate) hit a tapper just to the third base side of the mound to bring home Jones. After a wild pitch and walk to Ramon Osuna Sanchez (College of Charleston), Hand plated Fickas with a base hit through the right side of the infield.
The Outlaws could have had more. D’Agostino singled to right, but Sanchez was caught in a rundown between third and home for the final out of the inning.
Geneva responded in the home half of the frame.
Outlaws starter, Alec Romanowksi (Stevenson), hit Travis Kreitz (Kutztown) to start the stanza. Ricky Gorrell (Kutztown) delivered with an RBI double to left center. When the relay throw to the plate sailed high, Gorrell took third. He came home when a Mark Huddle (John Carroll) ground ball was mishandled. Andrew Utterback (Alabama A&M) lined a base hit to left, and Julio Nunez brought them home with his fourth double of the post-season – a line shot to center field.
“Previous at bats they were pounding me with fastballs,” Nunez noted. “I realized I had to take advantage of the fastballs, and I was able to hit one he left up.”
Like their counterparts, the Red Wings had a chance to score more. Cameron Coons (Alvernia) singled to left, but D’Agostino fielded the ball cleanly on a hop and gunned down Nunez at the plate.
Oneonta knotted the score in the sixth. Kyle Brennan (University at Buffalo) led with a base hit. Waln came on to run. Martis executed a sacrifice bunt. Kody Ruedisili (Wofford) put runners on the corners with a single to right. After a pop up on the infield, Ruedisili got caught in a rundown, and Waln scampered home before Gorrell made the tag for the final out of the inning.
Geneva regained the lead in the bottom half. Conner Gunn (Amherst) singled to start the inning. After a wild pitch from Drummond, Kreitz dropped a bunt and moved the runner to third. Huddle delivered with a two-out base hit.
Geneva led 5-4.
For the second time in four days the Red Wings will be forced to win an elimination game on the road. Geneva trailed the Syracuse Salt Cats 1-0 in the Eastern Divisional Series before coming back to win at Onondaga Community College, Tuesday night.
“Win or go home; our guys know what’s at stake,” Geneva coach George Schaefer said. “You can say you have the experience, but you never want to be in this situation.”
“It’s not over yet,” Nunez added. “We’ll go to Oneonta and just keep playing the game we’ve always been playing… We treat it as any other game.”
Hand went 3-5 with two RBI and a run scored.
D’Agostino had two hits. His other home run of the season was a grand slam on July 19th – the only ball to leave spacious Damaschke Field so far this summer.
“Damaschke is the biggest park I’ve ever played at as far as how the ball travels,” the left-handed batter said. “It doesn’t travel there at all. I kinda like playing here. It’s smaller I guess you could say. Damaschke’s really big.”
Mauseth went 2-4 with a stolen base.
Ruedisili made a pair of spectacular grabs in center field. He robbed Gunn of extra bases in the eighth with an over-the-shoulder catch at the wall. He also took away extras from Nunez when he chased down a drive on the warning track.
Utterback led Geneva with three hits in five trips.
Gunn and Huddle each had two hits.
Burks took the loss. The right-hander allowed two runs on a hit and a walk.
The series shifts to Oneonta for game two. Matt Kozemchak (Lehigh/ 0-0, o.oo) will make his first start of the post-season for Geneva. The southpaw went 3-0 with an ERA of 3.60 during the regular season. JT Genovese (Albany/ 0-1, 1.80) goes for Oneonta. Genovese took a record of 4-2 and an ERA of 2.70 into the playoffs.
A 7 p.m. first pitch is scheduled.
Paul Gotham is the founder, owner, editor and lead writer at Pickin’ Splinters. Paul is the Communications and Media Director of the New York Collegiate Baseball League. He is a contributor at USA Today and member of the USBWA. You can follow Paul on Twitter @PickinSplinters.
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