ZONGOL TOPS SAINTS IN LIBERTY LEAGUE OPENER

May 9: Liberty League Pitcher of the Year Joe Zongol of Rensselaer improved to 9-1 on the season and held St. Lawrence to five hits, striking out seven, as the Red Hawks moved into the winners bracket with a 6-1 win in the opener of the Liberty League Tournament at Rochester Friday morning.

 

The Saints, now 19-17 overall, will play an elimination game against the loser of Friday’s game two between regular season champion Rochester and fourth place Clarkson at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

 

Friday’s game was a lot closer than the final score might indicate as Troy Lassial and Zongol locked up in a pitcher’s duel until RPI broke things open with four in the bottom of the eighth.

 

RPI, 31-10 on the year, opened the scoring with a run in the bottom of the first as Sean Wilkes was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a groundout and scored on Dan Valentine’s single. The Saints came back to tie it in the third as Matt Carrigg walked, was sacrificed to second by Joe Shehata, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on a ground out by Tim Harris.

 

The Red Hawks took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the seventh on a two-out bunt single by Wilkes, a steal and Jim Devine’s run-scoring single.

 

RPI then put things away in the bottom of the eighth as Valentine doubled and scored on Camden Mamigonian’s triple, a run scoring single by Ken Carroll and a two run single by Wilkes.

 

 

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