Courtesy of GoBonnies.com
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – In the second afternoon of the 2017 season for the St. Bonaventure baseball team, the Bonnies flipped the script at the Snowbird Classic from Opening Day, scoring early and then withstanding a late charge from Dartmouth for an 8-7 victory Saturday.
Bona (1-1) plated three runs in the top of the first, sending eight men to the plate. David Hollins got the scoring started with his double to right, scoring Taishi Terashima who had singled to lead off the game. David Vaccaro followed with a run-scoring single, plating Cole Peterson who had reached on an error. A sacrifice by Tommy LaCongo brought home Hollins for the 3-0 lead.
Peterson doubled home another run in the second, but the 4-0 advantage would be cut in half by the Big Green in the home half of the inning. Dartmouth tied the game at four-all in the third, and the game would remain square until the sixth.
St. Bonaventure would push ahead with a two-out sixth inning rally. T.J. Baker doubled with two down and scored one batter later when Jared Baldinelli punched a single up the middle, advancing to second on the throw home. Sam Fuller brought in Baldinelli with a base hit to right for a 6-4 score.
After Dartmouth pushed across a run in the bottom of the sixth to cut the lead to just one, the Bonnies played tack-on as Peterson tripled to lead off the seventh, scoring on an RBI single from Aaron Phillips. In the eighth, Terashima drove in Baldinelli with an RBI single of his own.
That offense would all be necessary as Dartmouth (1-1) responded in the ninth.
After a strikeout began the inning, the Big Green picked up a triple and an RBI groundout. A hit batter and a double forced a call to the bullpen, or rather the infield as starting first baseman Baker came on in relief for the Bonnies.
It seemed as though Baker had coaxed a game-ending ground out to second, but the throw went wide allowing Hayden Rappoport to reach and continue the game. The contest ended in thrilling fashion as Blake Crossing drilled a liner into left that was put away for the final out.
Phillips started on the hill and went 5.1 innings, striking out four and allowing five runs on eight hits in a no-decision. Roman Wild made his Bonnies debut and earned the win, surrendering two runs in 3.1 innings of relief, striking out three with no walks. Baker picked up the save by recording the final out.
Baldinelli singled three times as the Bonnies pounded out 14 hits in all. Terashima, Peterson and Fuller all had two-hit days for the Brown and White.
St. Bonaventure finishes its stay at the Snowbird Classic by taking on Dartmouth again on Sunday morning at 11 a.m.
GAME NOTES:
Baker, who made 23 appearances as a relief pitcher last year, made his first start in the field for the Bonnies. He also recorded his second career save.
Fuller turned in his first career collegiate multi-hit game.
Baldinelli posted his first three-hit game in Brown and White.
Terashima, Peterson, Phillips, Hollins, Vaccaro, LaCongo, Baldinelli and Fuller all had RBI.
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