Box Score UNIONDALE, N.Y. (May 8, 2016) – A spirited rally on Senior Day fell just shy of a miracle comeback, as the Molloy College baseball team scored four runs in the ninth inning but needed five; the Lions fell to Saint Thomas Aquinas by a final score of 8-7 on Sunday (May 8) at Mitchel Field.
For Saint Thomas Aquinas (35-12, 16-7 ECC), sophomore right fielder Giovanni Dingcong (Daly City, Calif.) did the early damage against Lions starter
Kevin Hiss (Merrick, N.Y.). The reigning ECC Rookie of the Year first lifted a soft fly ball down the right field line that landed just inside fair territory in the first inning, scoring Greg Dawber (Commack, N.Y.) with the game's first run. Dingcong then blasted a two-run homer over the right-center field fence in the fourth inning against Hiss, giving STAC a 3-0 lead against Molloy (30-19, 13-11 ECC). The visitors tacked on two more runs in the top of the fifth inning against the Lions' bullpen, taking a 5-0 lead as starter John Bednarek (Cinnaminson, N.J.) scattered three hits versus the maroon and white over the first six innings.
In the top of the seventh inning, STAC got a lead-off walk before senior southpaw reliever
Peter Vath (Selden, N.Y.) struck out the side. Vath's emotion upon leaving the mound seemed to stir the Lions in the bottom of the frame; junior
Anthony Alberghina (Staten Island, N.Y.) led off the inning with a triple to deep center field that freshman outfielder Michael Morgan (Middle Village, N.Y.) lost in the sunlight. After
Brian Murphy (Elmont, N.Y.) was hit by a pitch and advanced to second base on a wild pitch, the Lions loaded the bases as Bednarek walked senior
Nicholas Gonchar (Staten Island, N.Y.). STAC went to the bullpen and called upon reliever Chad Sinko (Latham, N.Y.) to try and escape the jam and preserve the shutout. The junior right-hander struck out
Anthony Galanoudis (Farmingdale, N.Y.) before forcing
Ryan Hensley (Franklin Square, N.Y.) to ground into an inning-ending double play and keep the Lions off the scoreboard. After Saint Thomas Aquinas scored three runs in the top of the eighth, Molloy picked up three runs in the bottom half of the frame against Sinko to prevent the shutout. With one out and two runners on,
Elijah Leerdam (Jamaica, N.Y.) clobbered a ground-rule double to right-center field to score the first run for the maroon and white. Alberghina then singled in a run which was followed by Murphy reaching on a run-scoring fielder's choice.
Down by five in the bottom of the ninth, Molloy began to build the foundation for a rally against Maurizio Devita (Franklin Square, N.Y.). First,
Michael Wall (Massapequa Park, N.Y.) hit a towering fly ball that one-hopped over the left-center field wall for a ground-rule double. Following a wild pitch that sent Wall to third base, Hensley drew a walk and Devita was lifted in favor of Gregory Morano (Congers, N.Y.). The sophomore was greeted rudely as
Deilyn Guzman (East Hampton, N.Y.) shot a fly ball that hopped off the left-center field wall to score a run. STAC brought in closer George Navadel (El Paso, Texas), gambling on the ECC leader in saves to shut the door and end the dreams of an improbable comeback. The first batter that Navadel faced---junior third baseman
Kevin Podell (Wantagh, N.Y.)---promptly grounded a base hit through the right side of the infield that scored both Hensley and Guzman, bringing the maroon and white within two runs at 8-6.
Angelo Navetta (Staten Island, N.Y.) hit a grounder in the exact same spot in the next at-bat, bringing the potential winning run to the plate in Leerdam. The sophomore designated hitter moved over Podell from second with a fielder's choice and Alberghina brought him home on a sacrifice fly to cut the Spartans' lead to one. Navadel bore down and got the final out on a pop fly to right field as the Lions' rally came up just a hair short.
Molloy will enter the East Coast Conference Tournament as a seed yet to be determined. Check back with
www.MolloyLions.com for all the latest information about the Molloy baseball team and the upcoming ECC Championship Series.
