MYRTLE BEACH, SC – The Susquehanna University baseball team ended their spring break trip in Myrtle Beach Wednesday afternoon in overwhelming fashion, highlighted by a 10-run second inning to earn a 14-9 win over McDaniel. The River Hawks return from break splitting their four games down south for a 4-8 record.
Susquehanna already led 2-0 after one inning thanks to sacrifice flies between
Tony Rossi and
Michael Biuso, along with great pitching by starter Tegan Duffie, who earned the win after four innings of shutout ball with four strikeouts. The River Hawks then delivered what looked to be the knockout blow, plating ten runs on eight hits in the top of the second. It began with another sac fly, courtesy of
Thomas Romanelli, to go up 3-0, followed by a
Michael Mancuso RBI single. A few batters later with the bases loaded, Rossi knocked in another run with an RBI single, followed by
Michael Biuso forcing a bases-loaded walk. On the next at bat a wild pitch moved everyone up, scoring
Tyler Hmielewski to make it a 7-0 game. After a
Dylan Heyduk walk to load the bags again,
Lance Book's at bat produced three more runs. He watched as another wild pitch brought home Rossi, then delivered a two-run double to up the lead to 10-0. Mancuso returned to the plate a few batters later, driving in two more off a double.
Things quieted down through the middle innings, although the Green Terror offered a threat in the bottom of the fifth with a five spot to cut the lead down to 12-5.
Jack Cahill provided another run for the maroon and orange in the next frame with a solo home run to left field to up their lead again to eight at 13-5. McDaniel threatened in the bottom half with two more runs off a Hubinger two-run double, but
Tony Rossi answered in the top of the seventh with a RBI infield single to short. McDaniel's last gasp was a two-run double by Daly in the bottom of the ninth.
Christian Rossi,
Evan Applegate, and
Adam Stuck all came on in relief, with Rossi allowing four runs in the bottom of the fifth and Applegate pitching the fifth and sixth innings, allowing three runs. Stuck closed the game out in the final three innings, giving up two runs, none earned.
Tony Rossi and
Michael Mancuso each had three RBIs, with Rossi having a 2-for-2 day that included a sacrifice and drawing a pair of walks. Mancuso batted 2-for-5 with one double. Book batted 3-for-5 with two ribbies and one double, while Hmielewski had a day with two doubles in a 3-for-6 afternoon.
The River Hawks return from break ready to open their Landmark Conference season against Lycoming Saturday and Sunday at the University of Scranton.
