After giving up just four runs in their MAAC Conference opener victory on Friday, Marist baseball gave up double-digit runs to Merrimack on both Saturday and Sunday to drop the series two games to one.
The Red Foxes committed three errors in each of the two latter games of the series and the Merrimack bats came to life after being mostly dormant on Friday. Despite some positive individual pitching performances, Marist could not string together a complete effort, culminating in a series loss.
After redshirt sophomore left-hander Will Taylor got his first series-opening start of the season on Friday, redshirt sophomore right-hander Ty Hartley started game two for the Red Foxes. Hartley was hurt by his defense – he was tagged for seven runs total, of which only three were earned.
The Warriors jumped on Hartley in the first inning, thanks to back-to-back doubles by junior catcher Frankie Ferrentino and graduate student infielder Cavan Brady. Then, in the second, Hartley loaded the bases on a single, a walk and a fielding error he committed himself. All three runs proceeded to score, the first on a wild pitch and the second two on a two-run single by Ferrentino. Hartley racked up six strikeouts over the first two frames but also found his team trailing 4-0.
Marist fought back in the third, beginning with a leadoff single by sophomore outfielder Lewis Rodriguez. Rodriguez was followed by an RBI triple off the bat of graduate student outfielder Jason Claiborn and an RBI double by graduate student infielder Zach Donahue; Donahue had one hit in each of the three games in the series, a positive sign after he had just one hit in the team’s previous five games.
After Donahue’s double, senior infielder/outfielder Nate Lincoln advanced him to third before junior infielder Brady Steinert knocked him in with an RBI groundout, cutting the Warriors’ lead to 4-3.
Hartley produced scoreless innings in the third and fourth, but trouble struck again in the fifth. Ferrentino reached to open the inning on an error by redshirt freshman catcher Scott Esposito, then Brady singled to center and then freshman infielder Jayden Hamilton knocked in a run with a single that chased Hartley from the game.
Hartley was replaced by senior southpaw John Hacker to make just his second appearance on the season after missing all of last year with an injury. Hacker’s first batter reached on an error by Lincoln to load the bases before Hacker issued a walk to force in the second run of the inning. After an RBI fielder’s choice and another bases-loaded walk, Hacker was removed, having recorded just two outs. Sophomore right-hander Ethan Marzo replaced him and got Marist out of the inning, but not until after he uncorked a wild pitch that scored the fifth Merrimack run of the inning, granting them a 9-3 lead.
Aside from a Merrimack solo homer by junior infielder Logan Castellano and two late Marist runs in the ninth, the remainder of the game went relatively smoothly. Marzo provided four innings of one-run ball out of the bullpen with Marist down big, but the Red Fox bats did not have a seven-run rally in them. They ultimately fell 10-5.
In the rubber game, Marist utilized an opener before turning to graduate student right-hander Riley Orr, who they hoped would provide some length. Freshman right-hander Logan Scholl got the start and allowed two runs on two hits and two walks in the first inning.
Orr started in each of his first three outings of the season but struggled mightily to the tune of an ERA over 17. His new look role on Sunday appeared to be successful as he allowed just one earned run over four innings out of the bullpen.
After Scholl gave up two runs in the first, the Red Foxes came back to even the game in the second. Lincoln led off the game with a double and junior catcher Kyle Pollack launched a two-run homer, his second home run in the past week. Pollack’s homer marked the first of three times in the game that Marist fell behind and came back to tie.
Orr’s first three innings went scoreless, but he ran into some trouble in the fifth. Brady and Castellano each singled to set up men on the corners before Orr allowed a run on a wild pitch. Then, Claiborn committed an error that resulted in men on the corners once again and set up a double steal of home by the Warriors that doubled their lead to 4-2.
Marist again evened the game in the bottom of the inning on an RBI groundout by Donahue and a wild pitch by Merrimack redshirt freshman right-hander Nick Hunkele.
With the game even at four, Orr walked the leadoff man in the sixth, prompting head coach Lance Ratchford to turn to junior right-hander Jake Burt. Burt allowed the inherited runner to score, in part because of an error he committed that allowed the runner to advance.
With the Red Foxes again down, junior infielder/outfielder Aydan McNelly drove in a run with an RBI fielder’s choice that tied the game at five. McNelly’s RBI marked the last time that Merrimack did not lead in the game.
The Warriors outscored Marist 8-2 the rest of the way, including putting up three runs against redshirt sophomore right-hander Ryan VanDeWater and two runs against junior right-hander Caleb Kempler, Friday’s bullpen stars. VanDeWater failed to record an out and Marist ultimately lost 13-7.
Now sitting at 3-11 overall, Marist is still struggling to put complete games together. They have had several individual players perform well overall, highlighted by 2.66 ERA through four starts for Taylor, but seem to either struggle on the mound, in the field or at the plate as a team in each game.
The Red Foxes will look to put together a full effort this coming weekend against Niagara for another three-game set at Heritage Financial Park. The first game starts Friday at 3 p.m.
Edited by Ben Leeds
Graphic by Cara Lacey
Photo from Marist Athletics
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