SAN ANTONIO, Texas — The Endicott baseball team fell to No. 3 nationally ranked Trinity (Tex.) University, 9-4, on Saturday afternoon in their second contest of opening weekend.
James Nittoli (San Antonio, Texas) earned the win (2-0) on eight innings pitched, five hits, one earned run, two walks, and a game-high eight strikeouts.
Meanwhile, Kevin Gould (Rollinsford, N.H.) took the loss (0-1) via seven innings, seven hits, four runs (two earned), one walk, and six strikeouts.
Kyle Brennan (Wallingford, Conn.) opened up the Gulls scoring halfway through the top of the eighth inning with a solo home run to cut into Endicott's deficit at 4-1.
However, the Tigers responded with five runs of their own in the bottom half of the frame to spread the scoring open late in the contest (9-1).
The Gulls didn't go away quietly in the top of the ninth, though, as Endicott answered with a three-run frame. Joseph Millar (Lake Hopatcong, N.J) started the scoring when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. John Duffy (Stratford, Conn.) and Brennan followed Millar with an RBI single and a sacrifice fly to center field, respectively, to put the Gulls within striking distance (9-4).
Trinity then put the tying run in the on-deck circle after hitting a batter but squashed Endicott's comeback attempt by inducing a fly out to right field to lock up the win.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- This was the fifth meeting in the all-time series between the two programs.
- Brennan went 1-for-4 with one run scored, two RBI's, a home run (fourth career), and a sac fly.
- Matthew McKinley (Hudson, N.H.) went 3-for-3 with one run scored and a walk.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (0-2) and No. 3 Trinity (6-0) will play the final game of their three-game weekend series tomorrow at 12:00 PM (EST).
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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)
