A Quick Look
The SUNY Oneonta baseball team finished their spring trip losing a doubleheader Wednesday afternoon against Averett University. The Red Dragons come back home with a 3-7 record after losing game one 14-7, and 5-3 in game two.  

The Inside Story
The Cougars gained momentum early in game one, scoring three runs in the first. Averett brought in two runners with sacrifice flies from Preston Robbins and Nate Tuck, and scored the third off a wild pitch.  

Oneonta did not go away quietly and took the lead with a five-run third inning. Sophomore Cole Rockwell (Liverpool/Cicero-North Syracuse) led the inning with a walk and made it to second off freshman Andrew Bonilla's (Walden/Valley Central) single. One out later, senior Patrick McGee (Mahopac/Mahopac) brought in both with a double to center. Junior Sean Liquori (Thiells/North Rockland) scored McGee to tie the game with a single through the right side. After senior Matthew McAllister (Vestal/Vestal) reached base on a single, sophomore Noah Frasca (St. James/St. John the Baptist) gave the Red Dragons a 5-3 lead with a two-run triple.  

In the top of the fifth, Oneonta tallied two more. Junior Anthony Gonzalez (Carmel/Carmel) opened the inning with a single. Liquori moved Gonzalez to third with a double, and both the runners crossed home off a McAllister single.  

The Cougars answered back in the bottom half of the fifth with six runs, regaining the lead, 9-7. With two out and the bases loaded, Kevin Zischke cut the deficit to two with a two-RBI single. Averett brought the game to within one after a bases-loaded walk, and took the lead with a base-clearing single from Nolan Maccabe.  

The Cougars tacked on another five runs to put the game out of reach in the sixth. Zach Smith and Maccabe each hit two-run singles, and one run came off a wild pitch.  


Averett jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first inning in game two. The Cougars started the game with back-to-back doubles, that scored one run. Following the first out, Avery Spencer got the lead to two with a single. Spencer was later brought in on a single, and the final run of the inning was scored on Kevin Zischke's sacrifice fly.   

The Red Dragons got into a scoring opportunity in the second inning. McAllister hit a one-out single up the middle. He advanced to third on senior Joe Ottaviano's (Nanuet/Albertus Magnus) double, and sophomore Gregory Bandura (Pine Bush/Pine Bush) loaded the bases with a walk. Rockwell scored McAllister with a sacrifice fly, but the rest of the runners were left stranded in the inning.

Oneonta brought it back to within two in the third. With runners on second and third, Liquori hit a RBI single to center field.  

Averett got the lead back to three in the sixth off a wild pitch.  

The Red Dragons had one last chance to split the series. Bonilla started the final inning with a walk and made his way to third after a wild pitch and fly out. Bonilla crossed home on a groundout, however Oneonta could not get any closer.  

Just the Stats
Liquori went 2-for-3, scored twice, and had one RBI in game one. McAllister went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Frasca and McGee had two RBI.

Senior Dean Langman (New Hartford/New Hartford) received the loss after pitching against a couple batters and allowing one earned run. Sophomore Collin McAndrew (Whitesboro/Whitesboro) got the start and only pitched 0.1 innings, allowed three runs, one hit, and walked three. Ottaviano came in for relief and pitched 4.1 innings, allowed four runs and struck out six.

Gonzalez, Liquori, McAllister, and Ottaviano each recorded a hit in the second game. Gonzalez and Liquori tallied an RBI along with Rockwell.  

Junior Logan Carriero (Somers/Somers) received the loss after pitching 5.0 innings, allowing five runs off six hits, and one strike out. Senior Mattew Petrossi pitched a scoreless inning and struck out three.  

What's Next 
The Red Dragons travel back home to host Mount Saint Mary College on Friday for one game at 1 pm. Read Full Article