UNIONDALE, N.Y. (Apr. 8,2017) – The Molloy baseball team overcame early deficits in both games to sweep the Queens College Knights in Saturday's doubleheader. The Lions won game one, 18-13, and game two, 10-9. The Lions improved to 11-16 overall and 6-3 in the ECC with the victories.

Game One: Molloy 18, Queens 13

The Lions plated 13 runs in the third inning en route to an 18-13 win in game one.

Junior Angelo Navetta (Staten Island, N.Y.) drove in a team-high four runs, and junior Elijah Leerdam (Jamaica, N.Y.) and senior Ryan Dillon (Medford, N.Y.) recorded three RBIs apiece.  

Queens (7-13, 1-7 ECC) scored two runs in each the first and second inning to go ahead 4-0. The Lions cut the lead in half in the bottom of the second. Dillon hit an RBI single, which scored senior Anthony Alberghina (Staten Island, N.Y.), and redshirt senior Michael Rahn (Sayville, N.Y.) scored on a fielding error by the right fielder, which made it 4-2.

Molloy's bats came to life in the third inning, an inning which sent 19 batters to the plate. Navetta started the rally with an RBI single. Then, Rahn grounded out to score senior Kevin Podell (Wantagh, N.Y.) to knot the score at four. Leerdam singled to score Navetta. With the base loaded, Dillon singled through the right side to make it 7-4.  Senior Anthony Galanoudis (Farmingdale, N.Y.) drilled an RBI double, and Podell hit an RBI single to make it 9-4. With the base loaded again, Navetta cleared the bases with a double to increase the lead to 12-4.Galanoudis then added another RBI double before freshman Jake Saltzman (Old Bethpage, N.Y.) capped the rally with a two-RBI single to bring the lead to 15-4.

The Lions added two more runs in the fourth, after, Leerdam blasted a two-run homer to center to make it 17-6.

The Knights tallied five runs in the six to cut the lead to 17-11. But Rahn added a solo homer in the sixth inning as the Lions went on to win 18-13.

Sophomore Ryan Doerschug (Commack, N.Y.) pitched two innings in relief to pick up his first win of the season.

GAME TWO: Molloy 10, Queens 9

Saltzman drilled a walk-off single to left field to lead the Lions to a 10-9 victory in eight innings in the second game.

Like it did in game one, Queens jumped out to an early lead plating three runs in the first inning.  

The Lions answered in the bottom of the first. Rahn reached on an error, which allowed senior Brian Murphy (Elmont, N.Y.) to score. Leerdam then singled down the left field line to cut the lead to 3-2.

The maroon and white took the lead in the second inning. With the bases full, Rahn hammered a bases-clearing double to make it 5-3.

The home team added insurance runs in the third. Murphy laced an RBI triple, which scored two runs, and Podell drove home another run with an RBI double to make it 8-3.

Queens battled back. It used a five-run rally to tie the game, 8-8, in the fifth.

The Knights scored again in the top of the seventh to take a 9-8 lead.

Molloy fought back. Down to its final out, Saltzman scored on a passed ball.

The Lions loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth, setting Saltzman up to end the game with a single.

Junior Shawn Klotsche (Wantagh, N.Y.) threw two innings of relief to register his first win of the year.

The Lions and Knights continue their four-game series tomorrow (Apr. 9). First pitch is slated for 12:00 p.m.in Flushing, N.Y.