Hampton, Va. – On the back of five home runs in game two, the Molloy baseball team swept the No. 7/12 East Stroudsburg Warriors (2-1 and 18-14) Saturday afternoon at the Peninsula Pilots Invitational on War Memorial Field. Following the result, the Lions improve to 2-1 on the campaign while the Warriors move to 1-2.

Game One: Molloy 2, East Stroudsburg 1

• Both teams had a man reach base in the first inning via a single, but neither could crack the scoreboard through the first two innings.
• In the top of the third, East Stroudsburg took a 1-0 lead after an RBI single from Aiden Butz.
• Molloy responded in the bottom of the frame with a pair of runs to jump in front, 2-1. Senior Sean Serrano singled home senior Jeremy Taggart and Senior Sean Welsh brought Serrano home with a double into the left field corner.
• The Lions looked for insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth with runners on first and second with one away, but the Warriors induced an inning ending double play to escape the jam.
• East Stroudsburg threatened in the top of the sixth inning loading the bases with two outs on the board, but sophomore Jayden Patel got out of the inning with a fly out to keep the Lions in front.
• The Warriors had one last chance in the top of the seventh with the tying and go-ahead runners on second and third with two outs, but Patel shut the door inducing a game-ending strikeout to clinch the 2-1 victory.
• Serrano and Welsh collected two hits and one RBI apiece.
• Graduate student JC Kiss earned the victory tossing five innings allowing one run on three hits.
• Patel collected the save pitching the final two innings of shut out baseball and striking out four.

Game Two: Molloy 16, East Stroudsburg 14

• The Lions got off to a roaring start with seven runs crossing the plate in the top of the first.
• Junior Mike Sweeney began the inning with a walk and stolen second before scoring following a single from junior Jack Vallario. Three batters later, junior Charlie Imhof roped a two-run double off the left-center fence and came around to score after junior Joe Burriesci plated him with a single to right field.
• Sophomore Steve Mulqueen capped the inning with a three-run home run to dead center field for his first career homerun.
• The top of the second inning saw the Lions add to their lead after senior Sean Welsh belted a home run to increase the lead, 8-0.
• East Stroudsburg cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the second, after a pair of RBI singles and a groundout yielded three runs to cut the deficit to five, 8-3.
• The cardinal and white got a run back in the top of the third when Mulqueen poked an RBI single into right field to give the Lions a 9-3 advantage.
• After the Warriors added a run in the bottom of the third, the Lions answered with a pair of two-run home runs in the top of the fourth off the bats of Welsh and freshman John Franco to extend the lead, 13-4.
• East Stroudsburg saw a run cross the plate in the bottom of the fourth before the fifth inning saw the contest only scoreless frame. The Lions led, 13-5, midway through the afternoon.
• The cardinal and white pushed across three more runs in the top of the sixth. Sweeney scored a run following a ground out, Vallario singled home a run, and Welsh finished the inning with an RBI double to open the lead to 16-5.
• The seventh and eighth innings belonged to the Warriors, as they went on to score five runs on two hits and two walks in the seventh and four in the eighth on the back of three hits to come within two, 16-14.
• In the top of the ninth, Serrano connected and blasted a two-run home run over the right field fence to extend the lead back to four, 18-14.
• East Stroudsburg got a pair of runners on base in the bottom of the ninth, but sophomore Dylan Schriver left them stranded as the Lions would complete the victory, 18-14.
• Welsh belted a pair of home runs while driving in four runs.
• Mulqueen connected for his first career home run while driving in four.
• Franco made his collegiate debut blasting his first career home run.
• Serrano scored four times and drove in a pair of runs on his first home run of the season.

Up Next
The Lions will travel to Myrtle Beach, S.C. to compete at the Northeast Challenge beginning Friday, February 20^th with a doubleheader against Bridgeport. First-pitch of the twin-bill is set for 10:30 a.m.