Game 1: Merchant Marine - 4, Farmingdale State - 0
Game 2: Merchant Marine - 5, Farmingdale State - 4
Farmingdale, N.Y. - The Farmingdale State baseball team played host to Merchant Marine in a Skyline Conference doubleheader this afternoon and fell by scores of 4-0 and 5-4.
It was senior day as Ryan DePalma (Albertson, N.Y.), Joe Marino (Islip Terrace, N.Y.), Anthony Pristera (Seaford, N.Y.) and Vincent Napolitano (Bellmore, N.Y.) were each honored prior to the first game.
In game one, Merchant Marine (12-3, 11-3 Skyline) senior pitcher Joe Raab (Edwardsburg, Mich.) tossed a no-hitter allowing four walks and striking out seven on 102 pitches.
The Mariners led off the game with a Joey Zanetti (Richmond, Va.) single up the middle. After advancing to second on a wild pitch, Zanetti came around to score on an RBI single by junior first baseman Zac Skov (San Clemente, Calif.).
In the top of the fifth, USMMA scored an unearned run before Zanetti scored on a sacrifice fly to increase the lead to 3-0. After a walk, the Mariners went on top 4-0 scoring on an RBI fielder's choice from freshman third baseman Jack Millen (Shelby, N.C.).
In the bottom of the seventh, Raab forced a groundout and back-to-back strikeouts to seal the no-hitter. With the win, Raab improved to 4-1 on the season.
Zanetti and Skov each had two hits for Merchant Marine.
Farmingdale State (11-10, 10-7 Skyline) struck first with three runs in the bottom of the third inning in game two. Napolitano gave the Rams a 2-0 lead on a 2 RBI double to left center. In the next at-bat, freshman first baseman Jordan Lambert (Plainview, N.Y.) sent Napolitano home on an RBI single to left field.
In the top of the fifth, the Mariners used an RBI triple to right center by Millen and an RBI single to right center from senior second baseman Timmy Chase (Scituate, Mass.) to cut the deficit to 3-2.
USMMA tied the game in the seventh on a Jacob Kelly (Norfolk, Va.) RBI single to right center and a Brayden O'Connell (Beaver Dams, N.Y.) sacrifice fly put them ahead, 4-3.
Trailing 5-3 entering the bottom of the ninth, FSC pulled to within one on a Peter Minneci (Shoreham, N.Y.) RBI double to right field. After loading the bases with one out, the final two batters were retired as Merchant Marine held on for the 5-4 victory in game two.
Napolitano was 2-for-4 at the plate with a double, run scored and 2 RBI, while freshman left fielder Daniel Molina (East Meadow, N.Y.) had two hits, including a double and scored a run.
For Merchant Marine, senior shortstop Colin Baker (Clyde Hill, Wash.) had a team-high two hits.
Junior pitcher Quinton Heck (Massillon, Ohio) earned the win and improved to 3-0 after 0.2 scoreless innings of relief, while senior Andrew Hunt (Severna Park, Md.) threw the final three innings to pick up his sixth save of the year.
The Rams will finish out the regular season with a Skyline doubleheader at Merchant Marine tomorrow at noon.
*****