Mason Ryan fielding ground ball vs. Alfred State, 2019
7
Winner Plattsburgh State PLAT 6-15
5
Elmira College ELMIRA 3-20
Winner
Plattsburgh State PLAT
6-15
7
Final
5
Elmira College ELMIRA
3-20
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Plattsburgh State PLAT 0 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 2 7 14 1
Elmira College ELMIRA 0 1 1 0 1 0 2 0 0 5 8 2

W: F. Finkbeine (1-1) L: Carter, Taber (0-2)

5
Winner Plattsburgh State PLAT 7-15
3
Elmira College ELMIRA 3-21
Winner
Plattsburgh State PLAT
7-15
5
Final
3
Elmira College ELMIRA
3-21
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Plattsburgh State PLAT 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 5 6 0
Elmira College ELMIRA 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 3 8 4

W: R. Whalen (1-0) L: Singh Sarana, Garinder (0-4) S: F. Finkbeine (1)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Plattsburgh State Edges Baseball in Non-Conference Twin Bill

Score: Plattsburgh State 7, Elmira College 5
Score: Plattsburgh State 5, Elmira College 3
Records: Elmira (3-21), Plattsburgh State (7-15)
Location: Dunn Field -- Elmira, N.Y.

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College baseball team was defeated in both halves of a non-conference doubleheader against Plattsburgh State on Saturday afternoon, as the Cardinals edged the Soaring Eagles in a pair of two-run games by scores of 7-5 and 5-3.

Game One
EC senior Nick Cottone '19 opened the first contest against Plattsburgh State with four consecutive shutout innings. Cottone got things going by punching out two of the three batters he faced in the first, and after retiring the side in order in the third, he managed to strand two runners in scoring position in the fourth by catching Plattsburgh's Jon Craft looking at strike three.

The Purple and Gold provided early run support for Cottone on a Jansen Crossley '20 double laced over the head of the Plattsburgh center fielder in the second and on an RBI ground out by Mason Ryan '22 in the third. The Cardinals trimmed the deficit to 2-1 in the top of the fifth, but Shane Hake '21 doubled and scored on a Sam Plaugher '20 base hit that extended the cushion back to two runs, 3-1, in the next half inning.

Although Cottone kept his stride by carving through the Cardinals on six pitches in the top of the sixth, the Plattsburgh offense was eventually able to string together timely hits in the seventh. A lead-off walk and singles by three of the next four Cardinal batters evened the score at 3-all. Plattsburgh then took its first lead of the day, 5-3, by executing a successful double-steal and plating both runners on a bunted ball that rolled untouched through the middle of the infield. The inning continued with back-to-back errors on the Elmira defense, but the Soaring Eagles got out of the jam by turning a failed suicide squeeze into an inning-ending double play at the plate.

The Elmira dugout sprang back to life in the bottom of the inning, as Hake led off with a walk, stole second, and reached home safely on a Plaugher RBI hit. Plaugher would come around to score the tying run on an infield error by the Plattsburgh second baseman, but relief pitcher Frank Finkbeiner closed the door by getting the final two outs.

Two-out offense proved to be the deciding factor in the final inning. The Cardinals taxed Taber Carter '21, who relieved Cottone for the last two frames, for four consecutive hits with two away, including a pair of doubles that produced the go-ahead tallies in the ninth.

Game Two
The duo of Garinder Singh Sarana '20 and Andy Reed '19 limited the Cardinals to just six hits in the seven-inning nightcap, but Plattsburgh recorded the first five runs of the contest and held onto the lead in the late moments.

Sarana ran into trouble in the first by walking the bases loaded, but the hard-throwing Canadian responded with two superb at-bats against Steve Lydon and Rocco Cipriano. He got Lydon to swing and miss for the first out, before catching Cipriano sleeping at the dish on a called strike three. A ground ball to short nearly got the Soaring Eagles out of the inning unscathed, but a wild throw gave Plattsburgh a 2-0 advantage on two unearned runs.

Plattsburgh doubled its lead with a two-run third, prompting Elmira head coach Corey Paluga to turn to Reed out of the bullpen to conclude the game. Reed did allow an unearned run but otherwise pitched well. The fourth-year lefty limited the Cardinals to just one hit with two strikeouts in 4.0 innings.

EC spoiled Plattsburgh State's shutout in the bottom of the fifth. Mason Ryan collected an RBI with a hit that scored Jack Thomas '22 from second. Ryan and Hake then used a delayed double-steal get another run home, which made it a 5-2 contest.

Mark Ryan '21 and Crossley traded places in the sixth by hitting consecutive doubles to pull within two runs of the Cardinal lead at 5-3. But before things could get out of hand, Plattsburgh head coach Kris Doorey gave the ball back to Finkbeiner, who returned for his second outing on Saturday and closed the door for his first save of the 2019 season.

News and Notes
  • Plattsburgh State prevailed in both games in the first-ever meetings between the Cardinals and Soaring Eagles.
  • Cottone led all Elmira pitchers with eight strikeouts in 7.0 innings in the early bout.
  • With 48 strikeouts this season, Cottone is one shy of moving into a two-way tie for third in program single-season history.
  • Crossley combined for a team-high three hits, including two two-baggers, while hitting .500 against the Cardinals.
  • Crossley, Plaugher and Mason Ryan each drove in two runs in the doubleheader.
  • Hake batted 2-for-5 and logged team-highs in runs (4), stolen bases (3), and walks (2) on the afternoon.

Up Next
Elmira will play another non-conference game on Tuesday, April 16, when the Soaring Eagles head to Aurora, New York, to take on the Wells College Express at 5:00 p.m.

 
Print Friendly Version