HORSEHEADS, N.Y. – The Elmira College baseball team hosted the Wildcats of SUNY Polytechnic Institute for a conference doubleheader at the Holding Point Recreation Complex in Saturday afternoon. The Soaring Eagles battled but fell in both games of the doubleheader, 12-6 and 19-6.
 
GAME ONE: Soaring Eagles Drop Matchup After Late Rally by Wildcats
The Wildcats threatened in the first inning, loading the bases with one out to get the game started. Two consecutive strikeouts from Michael Polsinelli Jr. got the Soaring Eagles out of the jam with a scoreless frame. SUNY Polytechnic got two more runners on in the second, but Polsinelli got a groundout to get out of the inning. Brady Buttice singled to left to start the bottom of the second and Connor Stone followed up with a walk. A double play ended the rally and kept the game scoreless. The Wildcats broke the scoreless tie by scoring two runs in the third inning. Kaden Bolt sent a double out to left field with two outs in the third but was caught stealing on the next pitch to end the inning. Jordan Barthel stated momentum with a single to right field in the fourth. Buttice continued the inning with a double over the center fielders head to put runners on second and third. Despite the momentum Elmira was unable to push any runs across in the inning. The Wildcats threatened again in the fifth, loading the bases with two outs, but another groundout ended the inning and got EC out of the jam. 
 
Alex Dinicola doubled with one out in the fifth as Elmira tried to get things going. The Soaring Eagles were unable to score any runs in the inning as the score remained 2-0 heading into the sixth. Xander Canfield walked to start the sixth inning for EC. A few batters later Buttice launched a pitch over the left field fence for his second home run of the year, tying up the game at two. Connor Stone followed that by also sending a pitch over the left field fence, his sixth home run of the season, giving Elmira a 3-2 advantage. CJ Wheaton continued momentum with a double into the right center field gap and later came around to score on a single to center by Alex Dinicola, giving EC a 4-2 advantage. The Wildcats answered back with two runs in the seventh, evening the score at four each. Canfield walked with one out in the seventh and Barthel followed that up with a single to right, giving EC some base runners. Stone ripped a double down the left field line, bringing Canfield across to score and giving Elmira the advantage back 5-4. SUNY Polytechnic responded again, this time with seven runs in the inning, putting themselves in front 11-5. The Wildcats added another run in the ninth to go in front 12-5. Canfield started the ninth with a single up the middle and Barthel followed with a walk to put runners on first and second. A walk to Stone loaded up the bases with Soaring Eagles. Wheaton got hit by a pitch, forcing Canfield into score and cutting the deficit to six runs. The Wildcats closed out the contest, EC falling in this one, 12-6.
 
LEADERS
Offensively, Buttice led the way, going 3-5 at the plate with a double and a home run, tallying a pair of RBIs and a run scored. Stone went 2-3 at the dish with a double and a home run while notching two RBIs, two walks, and a run scored. Dinicola collected three hits in five plate appearances with a double and a run scored. Polsinelli pitched five innings on the mound, allowing just one earned run and striking out four.
 
GAME TWO: Soaring Eagles Drop Game Two Against Wildcats
The Wildcats struck first in this one, scoring six runs in the first before EC had a chance to bat. Dinicola singled up the middle to give Elmira a base runner in the first. Buttice singled for another base runner later in the inning, but EC was unable to push any runs across. The Wildcats added two more runs in the second, increasing their advantage to 8-0. Stone led off the second inning by sending his seventh home run of the season over the left field fence, getting the Soaring Eagles on the board. A walk to Wheaton and Michael Currao getting hit by a pitch gave Elmira some more base runners. Elmira could not push any more runs across in the inning as they still trailed by seven. SUNY Polytechnic answered back with another run in the third to put themselves in front 9-1. Barthel started off the bottom of the inning with a single and it was immediately followed by Buttice sending a double out to center field. Canfield hit a sacrifice fly that brought Barthel into score to cut the deficit to 9-2. The Wildcats responded with two more runs in the fourth inning, stretching the advantage to 11-2. 
 
Benjamin Intili collected a walk with one out in the fourth inning for EC. It was followed with two consecutive singles by Bolt and Dinicola to load the bases with Soaring Eagles. Two runs came across to score for EC when Barthel reached on a fielding error, making the score 11-4. The Wildcats added another three runs in the fifth inning putting themselves in front by ten runs. SUNY Polytechnic scored five more runs in the sixth inning, putting themselves in front 19-4. Bolt launched a pitch over the left field fence in the bottom of the inning for a two-run home run. The Wildcats closed out the contest in seven innings, the Soaring Eagles falling in this one 19-6. 
 
 
LEADERS
Offensively, Bolt led the way, going 3-5 at the plate with a home run, while tallying two runs scored and picking up two RBIs. Barthel went 2-3 at the dish, notching two RBIs and scoring a run. Dinicola collected three more hits in four at-bats.
 
UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles are back in action on Sunday April 19th as they host the Wildcats of SUNY Polytechnic Institute for a conference matchup at the Holding Point Recreation Center. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 PM.