WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Junior
Greg Echeverria threw his second complete game in as many starts to help the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) baseball team bounce back from a 5-0 loss to Union College and win, 18-2, in the nightcap of a doubleheader on Friday. With the split, the Engineers are now 6-6 overall (5-1 Liberty League), while the Dutchmen move to 5-4 (1-1 Liberty League).
Union took game one behind a complete game shutout from lefty Jake Fishman, who gave up just five hits over 7.0 innings. He struck out 11 and walked two.
The Dutchmen got the only run they needed in the third inning, on an RBI-single by Kent Curran. A CJ Worley groundout gave Union a 2-0 in the fourth, before an error brought two more home in the frame.
Andy Labeck made it a 5-0 game with a run-scroring ground ball in the seventh.
Jared Jensen went all 7.0 innings for RPI, surrendering five runs (2 earned) on nine hits. He recorded three srikeouts and two walks.
Game two saw the Dutchmen strike early once again, scoring two runs in the top of the first. RBI-singles from DH Eric Egan and Labeck highlighted a five-hit opening frame.
Rensselaer drew even at 2-2 in the bottom of the innings, thanks to base-hits from
Nick Palmiero and
Jason Ramos that plated Jensen and then Palmiero, respectively.
RPI took its first lead of the day in the bottom of the second, as Jensen drove in a run with a hit, before come around to score on a Union error. Three more runs came across in each of the next two innings, as the Engineers took an 8-2 lead.
A three-run seventh, capped by an RBI-single from
Tim LeSuer, put Rensselaer up 11-2. The home side wasn't finished, however, as it batted around in the eighth, scoring five times.
Jensen finished 3 for 4 with four runs and four runs batted in. Ramos went 3 for 4 with two runs and two RBI, while
Tyler Listing was 2 for 4 with a double, two runs and four RBI.
Echeverria gave up just two runs on seven hits in 9.0 innings. He struck out seven without a walk. Union starter Greg Geisel took the loss, giving up six runs (5 earned) on six hits in 2.2 innings.
Both teams are back in action tomorrow for games three and four of the series. First pitch is scheduled for 12pm.
