MADISON, N.J. – The fate of the first round in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Baseball Tournament for Post University Baseball will have to wait another day until Saturday afternoon at 5:30 PM at Breslin Field. After falling short of coming back in game one, 6-5, to the Golden Falcons, game two from Madison, New Jersey was suspended with the Eagles trailing, 16-11, in the top of the eighth inning due to darkness.
As a result, the final two innings will be played tomorrow at Breslin Field in Lynhurst, New Jersey, where if Post is able to stage a late-inning comeback win, they will take on Felician again in a deciding game three afterwards. The winner will head to Municipal Stadium as one of the final four teams vying for the automatic bid next weekend in the CACC Tournament. As of this evening, two teams punched their tickets in Goldey-Beacom College and Wilmington University, while Jefferson University and Chestnut Hill College will do battle in a deciding game three tomorrow.
THE BASICS
Post University 5, Felician University 6
Post University 11, Felician University 16 (Suspended, Top 8th)
Post University (25-25)
Felician University (31-19)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1: Post University 5, Felician University 6
Sophomore infielder
Rene Vega III got the scoring started for the Eagles in the second inning, driving in a pair of runs with his RBI triple, making it a 2-0 game with junior right-hander Max Weber on the mound for the Golden Falcons. Weber would end up settling down, lasting five innings in which he allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits with six strikeouts, three hit batters, and two walks. Post's third run came across in the fourth against Weber when senior catcher
Manny Contreras reached base safely on an error, which at the time, tied the game at three all.
Freshman right-hander
Justin Hascup got the start for the Eagles, throwing 6 1/3 innings in which he allowed six runs (five earned) on nine hits with two strikeouts and a walk. Hascup allowed a trio of runs in the third to give the Golden Falcons the lead, 3-2, as run-scoring hits from senior infielder Haiden Walters and senior outfielder Jose David Medrano, along with a sacrifice fly by senior catcher Luis DeLaCruz, fueled that scoring frame.
Both going 3-for-4 with a home run, an RBI, and two runs scored, senior infielders Ernesto Polanco and Matthew Scrivanic had back-to-back home runs in the fifth to build up a two-run lead for the Golden Falcons, who tallied three runs in the inning as an error at first by graduate infielder
Andrew Hartman led to the third run, making it a 6-3 affair.
While junior right-hander
Zion Fraser shut down the Felician offense for the final 1 2/3 innings, allowing just one hit with one walk and a hit batter, Post's offense would make a push in the ninth against sophomore right-hander Andrew Gendi, loading up the bases with nobody out, which led to him being pulled for junior right-hander Collin Kratzner. Junior outfielder
Kevan Diaz would plate a run with the first out of the inning via his fielder's choice, before sophomore infielder
Gill Dolan laid down a bunt, reaching first safely on a fielder's choice as the throw home from Kratzner was not in time.
With runners on the corners and the tying run 90 feet away, Vega III would ground out to first, moving Dolan to second to put runners on second and third and junior infielder
Jesse Alfalla at the dish with two outs. On a 1-2 pitch, Kratzner would get Alfalla to hit a low line drive to right field that would stay up just long enough for senior outfielder Rocko Brzezniak to snag, ending the game, and giving Felician the first game, 6-5.
Game 2: Post University 11, Felician University 16 (Suspended Top 8th)
After leading early in game two, 7-2, Felician would come roaring back to score 14 runs over the middle three innings to take control, 16-9, heading into the seventh, before Post came back with two in that frame. As it stands, the score remains 16-11 with the game resuming tomorrow at 5:30 PM from Breslin Field, with game three following should the Eagles win. A full recap of the second game will be available following the conclusion of the game.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Evan Cornwell finished today's first game with one hit, moving his career total to 187 hits – Cornwell is four hits away from tying Dan Luisi for the most hits in program history at Post University
- During his quest for history, Evan Cornwell continues to ride a hitting streak, which, following game one, has now reached 12 consecutive games
- Both Ernesto Polanco and Matthew Scrivanic finished with 3-for-4 games, both also driving in one run and scoring twice in game one for Felician University
- Over the last two seasons, Post University is now 0-3 against Felician University in the first round of the CACC Tournament
WHO'S NEXT
Game two will resume between Post University and Felician University at 5:30 PM tomorrow at Breslin Field. If the Eagles are able to complete the comeback in the final two innings, they will face the Golden Falcons in a series-deciding third game, 30 minutes after the conclusion of game two.
