Vassar Falls Twice to Ithaca in Crossover Series

By Steven Merritt

ITHACA – The Vassar College Baseball team traveled to Ithaca on Friday afternoon for the Liberty League Crossover Divisional Series as the Brewers fell 11-1 in seven innings in game one before falling in a 9-5 heartbreaker in the nightcap. Vassar’s season ends at 12-21 overall while the Bombers advance to the Liberty League Championship four-team double elimination tournament next weekend.

Game One – Ithaca 11 Vassar 1 (Seven Innings)
Ithaca opened the scoring in the bottom of the first as Collin Feeney drew a one-out walk followed by a single through the right side from Louis Fabbo. Feeney then scored on a wild pitch before junior Pat Kerrigan induced a double play to limit the damage.

The Bombers threatened again in the second following two singles from Ethan Rothstein and Riley Brawdy and a walk to Feeney. Kerrigan got out of the inning unscathed as he induced a lineout to senior Jack Silvera and struck out Fabbo to end the threat.

Vassar put together two two-out singles from Silvera and junior Daniel Laderman in the third to put runners on the corners before Fabbo made a diving catch on a line drive from junior Marc Milano to keep the Brewers off the board.

Camden Laney led off the bottom half of the third with a single to center followed by back-to-back walks to Ethan McDonough and Tyler Pugliese to load the bases with no outs. Matt Curtis’ fielder’s choice groundout plated Laney followed by a RBI groundout from Rothstein to make it 3-0.

Colin Shashaty reached on an error to lead off the fourth and moved to third on a wild pitch. Fabbo blooped a one-out single into center field to push the Ithaca lead to 4-0.
The Bombers tacked on a run in the fifth as Pugliese singled to right to lead off the inning and scored on a bases-loaded walk of Feeney.

Vassar got on the board in the sixth as Milano led off with a solo homer to left field.
Ithaca added on to the lead in the sixth as Laney drew a leadoff walk and McDonough doubled down the left field line with no outs. Pugliese then singled to left to score both runners.

Brawdy singled through the left side to knock in Curtis followed by Shashaty’s RBI single to make it 9-1. Feeney’s sacrifice fly plated Brawdy before Laney’s RBI single put the Bombers ahead 11-1.

For The Brewers
Milano finished 2-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI while Silvera, senior Reid Lapekas and Greenhawt each tallied two hits.

Junior Birch Herring-Jackson and Laderman each added a hit.

Kerrigan took the loss as he went three-plus innings, allowing five hits, four runs (three earned), five walks and struck out two.

For The Bombers
Six different Bombers finished with two hits while eight different Ithaca hitters drove in a run.

Colin Leyner earned the win as he threw six innings, giving up nine hits, one run, one walk and struck out three.

Game Two – Ithaca 9 Vassar 5
Vassar struck first in the top of the first as Herring-Jackson led off with an opposite field single followed by a walk to Bergman. Lapekas sacrificed both runners up a base before Silvera knocked in Herring-Jackson with a sac fly.

The Brewers added a run in the third as Lapekas was hit by a pitch followed by walks to Laderman and Milano and Lapekas came across to score on a passed ball.

Vassar put up another run in the fourth as Greenhawt led off with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Junior Finn Kaplan-Moore and Bergman both drew walks and Greenhawt came across to score on a fielder’s choice groundout from Lapekas. Silvera lined a single to left field to drive home Kaplan-Moore to make it 4-0.

Ithaca threatened in the fourth as Feeney led off with a bunt single followed by a walk drawn by McDonough. Following a double steal with two outs, sophomore Addison Lee stranded both runners with a strikeout to keep it 4-0 after four.

The Bombers scratched out a run in the fifth as Curtis led off with a ground-rule double to left center and scored on a fielder’s choice groundout from Shashaty.

For the second straight inning, Ithaca had a leadoff double as Laney doubled to straight away center before first year Rohan Mishra entered and induced a pop out and two groundouts to keep the Bombers off the board.

Vassar loaded the bases in the seventh after walks to Lapekas and Milano along with a hit by pitch of Silvera. The Brewers pushed a run across on a wild pitch with two outs to make it 5-1.

Ithaca cut the lead to 5-4 in the seventh following a RBI single from Shashaty, a sac fly from Feeney and Shashaty came around to score on an error.

The Bombers evened the score at five all in the eighth on a RBI single from Feeney to score Rothstein.

Ithaca walked it off in the bottom of the ninth as Curtis blasted a grand slam over the left field fence to win it 9-5.

For The Brewers
Silvera finished with a hit and two RBI while Lapekas tallied a hit, two runs scored and a run batted in.

Herring-Jackson, Bergman, M. Lee and Greenhawt each recorded a hit.

A. Lee took the no decision as he went five-plus innings, allowing four hits, one run, three walks and struck out nine.

Junior Luke Barrientos took the loss as he allowed two hits, two walks and four runs.

For The Bombers
Curtis finished the day with two hits, two runs and four RBI along with Shashaty adding three hits and two RBI.

Feeney recorded two hits and two RBI while McDonough added two hits.

Jack Picozzi started for Ithaca as he went three-plus innings, allowing four hits, three runs (two earned), four walks and struck out two.

Conor Burns picked up the win with a scoreless ninth inning and struck out one.