Trailblazers, Gladu earn first win with split against SUNY Poly

Auburndale, FL- The MCLA Baseball team held off the SUNY Poly Wildcats in game two 9-5 handing new head coach Mike Gladu a split of the opening doubleheader this afternoon at the RussMatt Invitational.  The Trailblazers dropped the season opener 4-3 in 8 innings before splitting the DH with the nightcap win.  MCLA is now 1-1 while Poly ends the southern swing at 5-6.

MCLA will challenge FDU-Florham tomorrow morning at 9:15 looking for their second win in a row.

Game Two:

MCLA jumped out to a commanding 9-1 after three innings of play as starting pitcher Todd Hunt was cruising, and the offense was applying pressure to the Wildcats.  In the top of the fourth however, the Wildcats made a move and got within 9-5 after Hunt tired and struggled finding the plate.  Connor Passalacqua's third hit of the game chased Hunt and brought in Trailblazer reliever Frank Rickus with one out and two aboard.

The lefthander got a line out to second base and then a harmless popup to end the threat.  MCLA threatened but couldn't add to the lead in the fifth and sixth innings, but Rickus was just as tough.  The rookie struck out three of the final four hitters he faced to preserve Coach Gladu's first career win.

Early on, it appeared it would be all MCLA.

In the first, MCLA loaded the bases on a pair of walks sandwiched around a Billy Pulasky single.  The Wildcats would escape however when Brett LaBonte grounded in to a forceout to end the frame.  The Trailblazers would grab a 4-0 lead in the second inning when Nate Alibozek and Ryan Shook had RBI singles and Billy Pulaski capped it with a shot to right making it 4-0.  The Wildcats got out of the inning without any further damage.

The Wildcats scratched a run across in the third when Tyler Vyce singled to score Connor Passalacqua who had walked.

The Trailblazers answered again in the bottom half when Brett LaBonte singled, stole second, and came around on Andrew Casteel's RBI single making it 5-1.  They would add four more runs on an error and two RBI single from Billy Pulasky.

Ryan Shook and Pulasky each had three hits while Pulasky also drove in three runs.  Brett LaBonte also had a pair of safeties.

Hunt went 3 and 1/3 innings allowing five runs, but only two earned.  He struck out five.  Rickus tossed a scoreless 3.2 innings also fanning five.

Kevin Crawford absorbed the loss for SUNY.

Game One-

In the home half of the eighth inning, SUNY  Poly's Connor Passalacqua began the frame with a single.  Joshua Rodriguez advanced him into scoring position with a bunt and consecutive hit batters loaded the bases for Connor Critelli.  He promptly laid down a squeeze bunt that the Trailblazers couldn't handle giving the Wildcats the hard fought victory.

In the top of the first, the Wildcats scored a pair of runs with two outs.  They parlayed a Trailblazer miscue into a run and an RBI double from Tyler Vyce made it 2-0 off MCLA starter Liam Nolan.  SUNY Poly would push another across in the fourth when Joshua Rodriguez singled, stole second and advanced to third on a balk.  He would come across on a sacrifice fly from John Noone making it 3-0.

The score would remain that way until the sixth when MCLA would take advantage of a few errors.  Nate Gutmann and Nate Alibozek singled to begin the frame bringing Ryan Shook to the dish.  The senior laid down a sacrifice bunt, however the Wildcats threw the ball away allowing both runners to score and sending Shook all the way to third.  Nolan would bat next and drop down a perfectly executed squeeze knotting the game at 3-3. 

The Wildcats had a great chance to end the game in the home half of the seventh against MCLA reliever Eamonn Andre.  Ryan Wegner and Raymond Smith singled with two outs putting runners at the corners.  After a stolen base by Rose put them at second and third, Andre would freeze Dante Rose to send the game into extras.

Passalacqua went 3-4 in the opener and scored a pair of runs.  Smith also had two safeties while Rodriguez added a pair of runs and 3 stolen bases.  Ryan Kelly earned the win tossing all 8 innings and allowing just two earned runs and  hits.  He struck out four.

Nolan went five innings for MCLA scattering 5 hits in his 2016 debut.  Andre was tagged with the loss throwing the final two frames.  Robert Jutras had two hits to lead the team.