Jersey City, NJ - The Iona College baseball team split its Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference season opener with Saint Peter's this afternoon. The Gaels (1-14, 1-1 MAAC) earned their first win of the season with a 5-2 win in the opener before a heartbreaking 6-5 loss in extra innings in the night cap.
Saint Peter's (7-8, 1-1 MAAC) got to Iona senior RHP
Shane Sveda with a single run in the first inning.
The score remained that way until the top of the sixth when Iona final solved Peacock senior LHP Eric Miksitz. With one out, senior CF
Paul Salerno singled up the middle. After stealing second, he was pushed to third base on a ground out. Senior DH
Allie Abbatiello singled home the tying run with two out.
In the top of the ninth, the Gaels took the lead. Two straight singles by junior C
Andrew Wernicki and Abbatiello put runners on first and second to lead off the inning. Two batters later, sophomore LF
Andrew Passerelle was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Miksitz was relieved after 8.1 innings and the bases loaded. Senior 2B
Ralph Marzella drew a walk to push across the go-ahead run. With two outs, sophomore RF
Chris Leahy's two-run single became the eventual game winning RBI. Freshman 1B
Chris Griffin pushed across another run after reaching on an error.
Abbatiello was the lone Gael with multiple hits, going 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI.
Senior RHP
Shawn Walsh (1-0) earned the win having relieved Sveda with two outs in the eighth inning. Sveda had a strong effort for the Gaels, tossing 7.2 innings, allowing six hits and just one run. He struck out six batters in the contest. Rookie RHP Matt Casino earned his first collegiate save. He induced a fly out and struck out the game's final batter to end a Saint Peter's rally in the ninth inning.
In the nightcap, Iona scored five runs on just one hit in the top of the fifth inning to take a 5-4 lead. In the inning, Iona loaded the bases with no outs, courtesy of their lone hit by Leahy and two walks. Sophomore 2B
Mike Walraven scored the innings first run on a wild pitch. The bases were loaded again when Salerno walked. Wernicki earned an RBI on a hit by pitch. With no outs and two runs in, starter Santo Maertz was relieved by Andrew Costello. Costello walked Abbatiello to plate a third run. Senior SS
Joe Lorenzo drove in a run on a fielder's choice. Passerelle plated the final run of the inning on an error.
Iona's lead was short lived, however, as the Peacocks evened the score at 5-5 in the bottom of the inning.
The score remained tied through the scheduled seven innings. Saint Peter's tallied the games winning run on a fielder's choice by 1B Kevin Kallert. Kallert beat out a potential inning ending double-play with runners on first and third to cross the run.
Freshman
Brian Callahan (0-2) took the loss. Lorenzo, Marzella and Leahy recorded Iona's three hits in the contest.
