A comeback bid by the St. Lawrence baseball team in the latter innings of the second game of a doubleheader against Plymouth State fell short on Monday afternoon, as the Saints were edged 8-7. Plymouth State also won game one, 17-9, to earn the sweep.

Junior Oscar Acevedo's pinch-hit home run in the sixth inning of the opening game was the highlight of the day for St. Lawrence, as it was Acevedo's first career homerun and first hit since 2016.

James Cronin and Isaac Lewis led the Saints at the plate in game one, as Cronin went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and Lewis was 2-for-3 with the RBI and a run scored.

Five Saints recorded extra-base hits in the nightcap and Anthony Butler and Evan Reichel led the team with two hits and two RBI each.

Game 1 – Plymouth State 17, St. Lawrence 9

The Panthers jumped out to a 5-0 lead through the first two innings, before the Saints were able to manufacture their first runs in the bottom of the second inning.

With one out, Cronin got things started with a triple to center field and then scored on an RBI groundout by Beau Yaremko. After Alex Black singled to left, Tyler Guido ripped the Saints' second triple of the inning to score Black and cut the deficit to 5-2.

Plymouth State added two more in the top of the fourth to push the lead to 7-2, with Mitch Sytule scoring on a wild pitch and Cam Ruziak coming in to score on an RBI single to left.

The Saints pulled within one in the bottom of the fame with a two-out rally, scoring four runs on five hits. Lewis hit a bases-clearing triple and the Brendon Frank drove in Lewis with a single in the next at bat.

The Panthers answered back, however, with a four-run inning of their own in the top of fifth to increase their lead to 11-6 and then scored six more on five hits in the top of the sixth to put the game out of reach for St. Lawrence.

In the bottom of the sixth, Matt Marowitz pinch hit for Frank and worked a walk, putting a man on base for Acevedo's two-run shot to cut the deficit to 17-8. Reichel scored the Saints' ninth and final run on an error later in the inning.

Reichel was also the pitcher of record at the starter in game one; he threw three and two-thirds innings and allowed seven runs on eight hits. Ryan Carson and Anthony Ferraro made relief appearances for St. Lawrence.

The game was called after six innings so the teams would be able to get the second game in.

Game Two – Plymouth State 8, St. Lawrence 7

The Saints took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on an RBI double by Reichel, but the Panthers answered with four runs on five hits in the bottom of the frame to take a 4-1 lead.

Taylor Digilio's RBI single in the second inning cut the deficit in half, as he drove in Jeremy Gerringer who led off the inning with a walk and then stole second to move into scoring position.

Plymouth State added a run each in both the second and third, before adding two more in the fourth to take an 8-2 lead.

In the top of the fifth, St. Lawrence pulled back within three with three runs on four hits, including an RBI triple by Reichel. Butler and Gerringer drove in the other two runs with RBI singles.

Butler also drove in the Saints lone run in the top of sixth, bring Lewis in to score with another single.

Alex Black pulled the Saints within one with an RBI double in the top of the seventh to make it 8-7, but was thrown out at third trying to stretch it to a triple. Guido followed with a triple in the next at bat, which would have tied the game if Black were still on base. The Saints stranded one on to end the game.

First-year Cameron Morrissey made his debut on the mound for the Saints, going three and a third and taking the loss. He allowed eight runs on seven hits and struck out two. Beau Yaremko finished the game in relief, giving up just two hits in two and two-thirds innings of work and recoding four strikeouts.

Records – St. Lawrence (1-4), Plymouth State (4-1)

Up Next –

The Saints are off Tuesday and will return to action on Wednesday at 12 p.m. against Johns Hopkins.