#2 BEHREND AND #6 LA ROCHE TO MEET IN AMCC BASEBALL TITLE GAME

#2 Penn State Behrend and #6 La Roche University both picked up victories on the second day of the championship round of the AMCC Baseball Tournament to advance to the final matchup Sunday morning. 

GAME 4:
#2 Penn State Behrend d. #4 Alfred State, 15-4
A nine-run seventh inning carried the Penn State Behrend baseball team to a 15-4 victory over #4 Alfred State on Saturday morning. Alfred State pushed across two runs in the top of the second to take an early lead. The Lions responded in the bottom of the third with an RBI single from Mac Ciocco. David Gibson gave Behrend its first lead of the day with a two-run double in the bottom of the fifth. Thomas Nicely added another run in the inning with an RBI double to make it 5-2 in favor of Behrend. 

The Pioneers cut their deficit to one (5-4) with a two-run homer off the bat of Joshua Gardner in the top of the seventh.

However, Behrend extended its lead to 10 (14-4) with nine runs on eight hits in the bottom half of the inning, highlighted by six RBI singles from Ciocco, Nicely, Daniel Boehme, Chase Palmer, Dylan Barnes, and Anthony Slate. 

In the eighth inning, Trent Burchanowski capped off Behrend's win with an RBI single of his own. 

Four Lions recorded three hits in the contest: Barnes, Boehme, Ciocco, and Nicely. Ciocco also drove in a game-high three RBIs

Starter Ethan Tinker threw 6.1 innings to earn the win on the mound for Behrend, allowing four runs on four hits and striking out six. Jake Manendo came on in relief, tossing 1.2 shutout innings with two strikeouts, while Will Jamison pitched a scoreless ninth inning. 

As a team, the Lions combined for 18 hits to score their 15 runs. Alfred State was led by Connor Kiefer's two hits and Gardner's two runs batted in

GAME 5:
#6 La Roche d. #4 Alfred State, 13-6
Facing elimination and enduring a near two-hour rain delay, La Roche baseball battled every element to continue its AMCC Championship Round run, clinching its spot in the AMCC Championship Game with a 13-6 victory over #4 Alfred State.

The Redhawks jumped ahead in the top of the second inning, as a Pioneer error crossed Brandon Snyder to make it 1-0.

In the top of the third, Josh Dreyer belted a solo shot to move the score to 2-0, then after a quiet fourth inning, Rick Heyz scored on an Alfred State error in the fifth, then Dreyer picked up his second RBI two batters later, with a sacrifice fly that plated Tanner Schmitt as the score now read 4-0.

The Pioneers countered in the bottom half of the fifth, as a two RBI single, another RBI single and an RBI ground out tied the game 4-4.

At the conclusion of the fifth, the teams were pulled from the field as the game went into a near two-hour rain delay.

When the teams returned to field in the sixth, Dom Brncic and Schmitt brought home Casey Jones and Christian Melendez with an RBI fielder's choice and a RBI hit by pitch to regain the lead at 6-4.

Alfred State would have one final response in the bottom of the sixth, driving home a pair of runs to make the score even at 6-6.

From that point on, it was all La Roche, first by scoring three in the top of the seventh to build a 9-6 lead as Brncic drew an RBI hit by pitch, Heyz drawing a bases loaded walk and a Schmitt RBI single.

La Roche added extra insurance in the top of the eight, as one run crossed after another Pioneer error, Brncic, whose RBI single scored Jones and was punctuated with Schmitt's two RBI single, scoring Brncic and Melendez to make it the final of 13-6.

Chris Tarquinio got the start and across 4.1 innings allowed four runs (two earned), three hits and walked three.

Cameron Mauk tossed one inning of relief and allowed two runs (one earned), two hits and one walk.

Reed Bursic picked up the victory, as he allowed just one hit, two walks and fanned two in 3.2 innings of work.

Offensively, the Redhawks once again picked up 16 hits, as Schmitt and Heyz each went 3-for-4 at the dish. Larry Bielawski, Dimitri Gary and Brandon Snyder all had two hits as well.

Up Next: Penn State Behrend and La Roche will square off at 11:00am on Sunday morning on the campus of Mount Aloysius College. In the double elimination tournament, the Lions need just one win to capture the AMCC title. Should La Roche prevail, a second game will take place afterwards.