The University of Scranton baseball team walked off Lebanon Valley College, 6-5, on Wednesday evening at Volpe Field in Scranton.
The Basics
- Final Score: Scranton – 6, Lebanon Valley – 5
- Records: Scranton (17-6, 6-2 Landmark), Lebanon Valley (9-13)
- Win: TJ DiMattia (1-0), Loss: Nate Savage (0-2)
How it Happened
- Lebanon Valley struck first by taking advantage of a Scranton error, moving ahead 1-0 in the top of the first inning.
- Scranton answered in the bottom half of the inning. Jared Cassella lined a double down the left field line and later scored on a fielder's choice off the bat of Roman Valvano, evening the score at 1-1.
- The Dutchmen regained the lead in the top of the second when Joey Santora hit a home run to make it 2-1.
- The Royals responded again in the bottom of the second. Jimmy Lundari led off with a double to right field and came home on an RBI from TJ DiMattia, tying the game.
- Scranton pulled ahead with three runs in the bottom of the third to take a 5-2 lead. Joey Granko reached second to start the inning after an error, and John Heitzman followed with a walk. During a double steal attempt, a throwing error allowed Granko to score while Heitzman advanced to third. Hunter Petrich brought Heitzman home with a sacrifice fly, and after a single by Roman Valvano, Anthony Walter drove him in two batters later to extend the lead.
- Lebanon Valley got one back in the top of the sixth with an RBI single, trimming the deficit to 5-3, and added two more runs in the seventh to even the score at 5-5.
- In the top of the eighth, TJ DiMattia took the mound for Scranton with runners on first and second and nobody out. After the first batter reached on an error, he regrouped and retired the next hitter on a popout before striking out the following two batters to leave the bases loaded and keep the game tied.
- DiMattia followed with a scoreless ninth, setting up a walk-off win for Scranton in the bottom half. With two outs, Thomas Lacoe doubled down the right field line and scored one batter later when the left fielder dropped a fly ball off the bat of Brayden Keller, giving Scranton a 6-5 victory.
Top Performers
- TJ DiMattia pitched two scoreless innings with 3 strikeouts, while also driving in a run at the plate.
- Roman Valvano went 2-4, with one-run scored and an RBI.
- Anthony Walter was 2-2 with an RBI
Up Next
- The Royals are back in action on Saturday with a double header against Catholic University. First pitch for game one is set for 11 AM at Volpe Field in Scranton.
