Box Score

AUBURN, N.Y. – The Rensselaer baseball team lost for the second time in two days to second-ranked Cortland, 6-2, in the New York Region of the NCAA Tournament. The Red Hawks, who were the final team to lose two games in the double elimination tournament, finish the season at 36-12. The Red Dragons improve to 42-3.

Cortland starting pitcher Nicolas Blanco (Bronx, NY/St. Raymond’s) allowed just two runs (0 earned) on four hits over 8.2 innings. He walked two and struck out six before being removed with two on and two out in the bottom of the ninth inning. J.J. Potrikus (North Syracuse, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) then came on and picked up a strikeout to end the game.

After Rensselaer scored a run in the bottom of the first inning, the Red Dragons answered with two in the top of the second to take a 2-1 lead. Cortland’s Joey Russo (Inwood, NY/Lawrence) drove in the first run of the second, before the second run came in on an error.

Blanco and RPI started Joe Zongol (Flower Mound, TX/Southington (CT)) then got locked in a pitchers duel, as neither allowed a run until the ninth inning. Zongol, who finished with 147 pitches thrown, allowed six runs (0 earned) on seven hits in completing his 17th career game – tying the school record. He struck out eight, while walking four.

The Red Dragons scored four runs in the ninth inning on four hits, as they were once again aided by an RPI error.

Rensselaer picked up an unearned run off of Blanco, before he was replaced by Potrikus in the ninth. Ken Carroll (Shelton, CT/Fairfield Prep.) grounded out to first, scoring Patrick Reardon (Troy, NY/LaSalle Institute) from third.

Carroll, Reardon and reliever Andrew Novick (Hopewell Junction, NY/John Jay) all earned All-Tournament team honors. The 36 wins for the 2008 club is a school record for wins in a season. Zongol’s 286 career strikeouts is also a new Rensselaer mark.