NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Iona College baseball team dropped two tough contests a doubleheader vs. Saint Peter’s conference doubleheader at City Park. The Gaels fell short 7-5 in the opener and 2-0 in the night cap.
The Peacocks had an answer for Iona each time they scored in the opener. Iona led 1-0 on a sacrifice fly by junior C Carmine Palummo in the opening inning only to see Saint Peter’s knot the score with a run in the next frame.
Palummo earned another RBI without the help of a hit in the fifth inning after he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. The Peacocks again answered in the next half inning scoring two runs following a leadoff walk and back-to-back one out extra base hits.
Saint Peter’s added a key insurance run in the seventh and three more in the ninth. Iona got the tying run on base in their last at bat before a sharp line drive was snared by the Peacock second baseman to end the game.
Senior 1B Jimmy Giuliano, junior LF Travis Mistretta and rookie 3B Seth Hoagland had two hits apiece. Palummo drove in three of the Gaels five runs while Hoagland drove in the other with a ninth inning, two-run single.
Sophomore LHP Bill Maier took the loss. He pitched into the seventh inning allowing six hits, three earned runs and two walks with four strikeouts.
Saint Peter’s SS Jon Kristoffersen was 3-for-5 with two runs scored and three RBI recording two triples in the win. LF Chris Hugg two hits and two RBI while 1B Nick Henriquez also drove in two runs. RHP Kevin Soriano bounced back from a rough outing vs. Canisius last Sunday to earn the win, allowing two runs in 5.1 innings of work.
Junior RHP Mariano Rivera was on the short end of a pitchers’ duel with Saint Peter’s RHP John Leiter where the two hurlers with Major League Baseball pedigree combined to allow just three hits in the seven inning nightcap.
Saint Peter’s scored both of its runs in the fourth inning taking advantage of a walk, a sacrifice bunt, a wild pitch and two passed balls to account for the tallies. Rivera allowed his first and only hit of the contest following the second run crossing the plate when Henriquez struck a ball just inside the line to left field for a double. Rivera struck out 10 batters and allowed two runs on one hit with a walk.
Leiter, the nephew of former MLB pitchers Al and Mark Leiter, allowed just two hits and a walk in the complete-game shutout.
The two teams complete the three-game series tomorrow at City Park with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 pm.
