Randal Mendez Smacks Two Home Runs as Baseball Faces Merrimack
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Box Score 2 NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (Mar. 12, 2016) – Despite four homeruns from three separate Mavericks, the Mercy College baseball team was unable to defeat Merrimack College on Saturday afternoon, falling 8-7 in ten innings and 6-4 in eight innings at Warrior Baseball Diamond.
Game two of the day was called after eight innings due to darkness.
The Mavericks fall to 4-8 after today's contests, while the Warriors will rise to 7-3.
Game 1: Merrimack 8, Mercy 7
The Mavericks were unable to pick up the victory in the first game of the series, despite Mercy's 16 hits compared to the Warriors eleven.
Sophomore Bryan Torres (Bronx, N.Y./All Hallows) was able to record three hits and two RBI for the Mavericks. Junior Randal Mendez (New York, N.Y./Coppin State University) hit the lone home run of the game.
The game got off to a slow start, as the scoring did not start until the bottom of the third inning. For Merrimack, Tyler Lyne was able to drive in the first runs of the game when he hit a double to left field, allowing two Warriors to score.
The Mavericks answered back when they stepped up to the plate, having six hits in the top of the fourth inning. It was freshman Nicholas Chilson (Johnson City, N.Y./Johnson City) who was able to drive in the first runs of the game for the Mavericks off of a single to left field, allowing Mendez to score to bring the score to make it 2-1. It was senior Giovanni Lasalandra (Warwick, N.Y./Warwick Valley) who was also able to execute while at the plate, singling out to right field and bringing Chilson and junior Charles Fina (Kingston, N.Y./Ulster County CC) in to score, giving the Mavericks a 3-2 lead. Torres later followed in the inning with an RBI single to center field that scored Lasalandra to give Mercy a 4-2 lead.
Next up was Merrimack, who was able to answer back with just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning when Matt Nicholson singled out to the left corner, allowing Sean O'Neill to score. The Mavericks would enter the fifth inning with a 4-3 lead.
The Warriors were able to score four runs in the bottom of the fifth on just four hits in the inning to make it 7-4. It wouldn't be until the top of the eighth inning that another run would be scored in the game. Mendez was able to put the Mavericks on the board after nailing a home run for Mercy. It was Lasalandra's double, a single from sophomore Nick Daley (Glenwood Landing, N.Y./North Shore), followed by a double from Torres that was able to drive in the second run of the inning for Mercy. The Mavericks then were able to hold the Warriors to no runs scored in the bottom of the eighth. The inning came to an end with Mercy trailing 7-6.
Trailing by one, the top of the ninth was key for the Mavericks if they wanted a shot of winning the game. Up at the plate was senior Scott Hagan (Mamaroneck, N.Y./SUNY Binghamton), who was hit by a pitch and advanced to first. After advancing to second on a wild pitch, sophomore John Young (New Hyde Park, N.Y./Archbishop Molloy) was up to bat. A single to center field would drive Hagan in to bring the score to 7-7. It would be the bottom of the tenth inning where the Warriors were able to score the final run of the game to give them the victory in the first game of the series.
Starting at the mound for Mercy was graduate student Matt Snyder (Albany, N.Y./University of Kentucky) who pitched for 4.1 innings, striking out three batters. Next up was junior Matt Nalbone (Islip, N.Y./Islip) who pitched for 5.1 innings, striking out seven batters and only allowing three hits and one run.
Game 2: Merrimack 6, Mercy 4
It would be the fourth inning rally consisting of three home runs that would keep the Mavericks in the second game of the series against the Merrimack Warriors.
The Mavericks were trailing 2-0 at the start of the fourth inning. Leading off the inning was Hagan, who nailed the first homer of the inning to drive in the first run of the game for Mercy. Following Hagan was Justin Palladino (Yonkers, N.Y./Westchester CC) who lined out to left center field. Next up was Mendez, who was able to record his second home run of the day, tying the game at 2-2 with no outs in the inning. Fina then stepped up to the plate and singled out to center field. It would be Chilson who would hit the third home run of the inning, driving in two runs and giving Mercy a 4-2 lead.
It would be bottom of the sixth inning that would bring Merrimack back into the game, when they were able to score three runs off of two hits. At the end of the sixth inning, the Mavericks trailed the Warriors 6-4. Neither team would score another run for the remainder of the game.
On the mound for the Mavericks was senior James Patterson (Cornwall, N.Y./Cornwall). Patterson threw all seven innings and struck out a total of four batters.
Head Coach Jason Lamando and the Mavericks resume action on Wednesday, March 16th when they will host Bloomfield at 3:00 p.m.
