By ABIGAIL SCHMIDT
HOUGHTON, N.Y. — The Genesee Rapids got their second win in a row Monday night with a 4-1 win over the Rochester Ridgemen at the Kerr-Pegula Athletic Complex in New York Collegiate Baseball League action.
Jordan Wilkerson (East Texas Baptist) tossed 6.1 innings for the win.
“Jordan settled in and threw a great game for us,” said Rapids manager Tyler Rost.
Wilkerson allowed one run on five hits and two walks. He struck out two.
“I was struggling to find the strike zone early,” commented Wilkerson. “I was able to throw some balls across the plate and get them swinging, but tonight I definitely relied on my defense. It’s good to know they have my back out there and can help get me out of some tough situations.”
The Rapids offense gained an early 3-0 lead in the first. Two of the runs came off a Karlis Graubics (Marymount) two-run RBI single and an error from the Rochester center field. Shortstop Nick Ippolito (Cal St. Stanislaus) also tallied a run from a Ryan Dickt (Virginia-Wise) RBI single.
“We got on the board early,” said Rost. “It’s always nice to score early and get some momentum.”
Ippolito crossed home again in the second off a Corey Andrade (Anna Maria) RBI double. Ippolito also added a double on the night.
Rochester tallied a run in the seventh as Tim Gurnow (Southwest Baptist) scored off a Michael DiViesti (Butler) RBI double.
Gurnow also recorded a double on the game.
“I would love to see us play a complete, clean game,” said Ridgemen manager Joe Shallenberger. “Unfortunately an error put us in a bad spot, but nobody intends to make that error, so we just have to pick the kid up and let him know that accidents happen. We’re still hitting the ball well, and we’re staying positive.”
Cameron Carney (Tusculum) took the loss for the Ridgemen. He allowed four runs (two earned) on six hits with six strikeouts in six innings. Tyler Taute (Mid America Nazarene) threw two shutout innings for the Ridgemen.
Jason Collingwood (Greenville) came out of the bullpen for Genesee and did not allow any runs over an inning and a third. Breton LaRose (Sacred Heart) struck out two over an inning and a third for his third save of the season.
The Ridgemen fell to 6-11 on the season and will travel to Olean to take on the Oilers Tuesday and Wednesday.
“The bottom line is, we have a choice,” said Shallenberger. “We can either hang our heads and let the season go away from us, or we pick ourselves up and approach the next game like we have a 0-0 record and it’s a whole new season, and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
The Rapids improved their record to 12-7 and look forward to taking on the Niagara Power on Wednesday for the first time this season. The Power sit on top of the NYCBL’s Western Division with the Rapids close behind them in second.
“We just need to treat [the game against the Power] like any other game,” commented Rost. “Obviously it’s big because those guys are on the top. But we just have to come into it like we have the past few games and I think we’ll be fine.”
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