DANVILLE, Va. — The Southern Vermont College baseball team opened up its 2016 regular season Sunday afternoon, falling 7-2 in both games of a doubleheader at Marymount University.
The Mountaineers went down 6-0 after the second inning of the day's first game before scratching across a run in the fourth; Marymount responded with one in the bottom of the fourth, and SVC then scored the contest's last run in the top of the fifth for the 7-2 final.
MU grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game two and added a single run in both the second and third frames; the Mountaineers cut it down to a 4-2 Saint lead with a pair in the fifth, but Marymount was able to pad its separation with three more in the sixth to finish off the day's sweep.
SVC (0-2) returns to the Old Dominion State next weekend for a pair of twin bills, first visiting Southern Virginia University on Saturday for a 12 p.m. first pitch before playing two at Washington and Lee University on Sunday.
GAME 1: Marymount 7 – Southern Vermont 2
The Saints opened up the first-ever meeting between the two sides with four runs in the bottom of the first, taking a lead that would prove large enough to carry on to victory. MU added another two in the second before SVC got on the board with one run in the top of the fourth. Marymount answered in the bottom of the frame with one of its own to make it 7-1, only to see the Mountaineers cut back into the deficit with another lone run in the ensuing box. Neither side would cross the plate through the remainder of the game as the Saints closed out the victory.
Southern Vermont freshman left fielder Cody Sullivan (Brunswick, N.Y.) went 1-2 with a run-scoring double while senior shortstop RJ Pingitore (Perth, N.Y.) knocked in the first Mountaineer tally on a fielder's choice. Junior designated hitter Anthony Mercuri (Ridge, N.Y.) worked a walk and scored a run in the effort, and freshman second baseman Peter Schmidt (Stewartsville, N.J.) added two walks and another run.
Mountaineer junior righty Joshua Hay (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) suffered the loss from the hill (0-1), striking out four Saint batters in four innings of work. Sophomore right-hander R.J. Henle (Plantation, Fla.) worked two innings in relief, giving up just one hit while striking out two.
SVC was able to get a pair of runners on with two outs in the first inning, but a strikeout put an end to the threat as Marymount took to the plate and pushed across four runs in the bottom of the frame. After the Saints added two more in the second, Schmidt worked his first walk of the day to lead-off the third; he would be stranded at first, however, as MU retired the next three Mountaineer batters to end the inning.
Mercuri got on base in the fourth with a two-out walk, then scoring on the ensuing at bat when Sullivan knocked him around with a double to the gap in left center. Marymount answered in the bottom of the inning to extend its lead back to six with a solo run that made it a 7-1 ballgame.
Southern Vermont came right back in the fifth to again cut it down to a five-run deficit as Schmidt got aboard with his second lead-off walk. A wild pitch moved him into scoring position, and a single to right by freshman right fielder Zack Stacey (Saratoga, N.Y.) put Mountaineer runners at the corners with no outs. Pingitore followed a strikeout with a grounder sent down to short, making way for Schmidt to trot across the plate for the 7-2 tally.
SVC got a pair of runners on base in the sixth before the side was retired at home on a run-scoring attempt from second, and the Mountaineers then went down in order in the seventh for MU to finish off the victory.
GAME 2: Marymount 7 – Southern Vermont 2
Marymount scored twice in the first for another early lead before adding one in both the second and third innings. SVC cut its deficit in half with two runs in the fifth, but the Mountaineers would be held from crossing the plate in the final two frames while the Saints tacked on three in the sixth for the 7-2 final.
Pingitore went 2-4 at the plate with an RBI double and a run scored while Stacey had a 1-3 showing, working a walk and touching the dish once in the effort. Sophomore right fielder Niko D'Agnese (Mahopac, N.Y.) was 2-3 with the stick while stealing two bases, and sophomore third baseman John Arancio (Oradell, N.J.) knocked in the other run for the Mountaineers.
Junior righty Dylan Angelo (Ft. Johnson, N.Y.) went 5.1 innings with the start for SVC, striking out a pair of MU batters in the loss (0-1).
Southern Vermont had two runners on in the top of the first, but Marymount worked out of it to bring the hosts up to the plate; the Saints notched a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning to take a lead they would not relinquish. The next two innings saw SVC get a pair of ducks on the pond, only to have all four of those runners get stranded before MU extended its lead in the bottom of each frame.
The Mountaineers went down in order in the fourth, but they were able to break through to the scoreboard in the following inning to trim their deficit. Stacey led-off the fifth with a single through the left side, then moving up 90 feet with his first collegiate stolen base. Pingitore came to the plate and smacked a double out to left, bringing home his rookie teammate for SVC's first run of the game. Arancio followed with an RBI groundout on the ensuing at bat, making it a 4-2 contest before Marymount got out of the inning.
D'Agnese tallied a one-out single through the left side of the diamond in the sixth before moving around to third with his second steal of the game and an MU wild pitch. That's as far as he would get, however, as the Saints ended the threat with a strikeout. Marymount followed with three runs in the bottom of the inning to open it up to a 7-2 lead and then closed out the win in the next frame with three groundouts.