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Roo Nazario-Cruz leads baseball to split vs. Wildcats

Posted 4/16/15

Rome, NY – Christian Nazario-Cruz (Naguabo, Puerto Rico) and the SUNY Canton bats exploded for 19 runs as the baseball team split a doubleheader against Cazenovia College on Wednesday afternoon at …

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Roo Nazario-Cruz leads baseball to split vs. Wildcats

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Rome, NY – Christian Nazario-Cruz (Naguabo, Puerto Rico) and the SUNY Canton bats exploded for 19 runs as the baseball team split a doubleheader against Cazenovia College on Wednesday afternoon at DeLutis Field. The Wildcats (7-10) took the opener 8-6 before the Roos (7-19) bounced back with a 13-11 victory in the nightcap.

Game 1

The Roos scored the first three runs of the game in the first and second innings. Jeremy Baez (Bronx, NY) singled to center field scoring Nazario-Cruz on the play. Derrick Machado (Brooklyn, NY) drove Seth Douglas (Reedsburg, WI) in with a base hit to left field. Nazario-Cruz doubled in the second inning to score Brandon Welch (Constable, NY) who walked earlier in the inning.

Cazenovia scored eight runs in the third (4), fourth (3) and fifth (1) innings to take a commanding 8-3 lead into the sixth. SUNY Canton looked to rally in the bottom of the seventh and brought three runners across falling just short of the comeback. Nicolas Demarais (Plattsburgh, NY) hit a 2 RBI single to left scoring Baez and Douglas and Vinny Bondinello's (Egg Harbor, NJ) base hit to center scored Matt Hall (Palmyra, NY).

Robbie Osterer (Ottawa, ON) sprinkled three hits over four innings as just four of his seven runs surrendered were earned. However, he walked four batters and threw four wild pitches while striking out eight batters.

Game 2

The Wildcats plated a pair of runs in the top of the first in the second game, but the Roos bounced right back in the bottom half of the inning. Machado reached on a fielder's choice as Nazario-Cruz and Matos both scored. Demarais singled home Machado and Chris Roenbeck (Plattsburgh, NY) scored after Greg Dobies (Schenectady, NY) reached on an error by the catcher.

Cazenovia took a 5-4 lead after scoring three runs in the second and third innings but the Roos tied the game at five after Nazario-Cruz scored Demararis on an RBI groundout. In a back-and-forth affair Caz took an 8-5 lead after their at-bats in the fourth. The Roos got one back on a Machado RBI single in the bottom of the frame.

SUNY Canton knotted the game at 8-8 with two runs in the bottom of the fifth on a clutch single from Douglas that plated Matos and Nazario-Cruz. The Roos, playing as the host team, seized control of the game with a five run outburst in the sixth.

Welch singled to left and Nazario-Cruz followed with a 2 RBI double. Matos kept the inning going with another 2 RBI double to left and Baez closed out the scoring on an RBI triple.

The Wildcats plated three runs in a seventh inning rally that would fall short as Casey Garcia (Miramar, FL) came on to close the door and earn his first save. He threw two-thirds of an inning giving up one hit.

Dom Deliberti (Staten Island, NY) earned his second win of the season to improve to 2-0 throwing two and two-thirds of relief, while Khalil Bratton (Queens, NY) got the no-decision.

The baseball team will travel to Alfred State College where it will play a pair of doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. First pitch each day is set for 2 p.m. and 12 p.m., respectively.