AUBURNDALE, FL - The Oneonta Red Dragons baseball team dropped both games of a doubleheader against the Southern Maine Huskies baseball on Saturday, falling 13-2 in the opener before losing a 5-1 contest in game two. With the sweep, Southern Maine improved to 4-1 on the season while Oneonta moved to 7-5.
Game 1: Southern Maine 13, Oneonta 2
Southern Maine broke the game open with a big third and fourth inning to cruise to a 13-2 victory in the first game of the twin bill.
After taking a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI fielder's choice by Dylan Firmin, the Huskies added three more runs in the third. Peter Keblinsky drove in a run with a single before Caleb Vacchiano delivered a two-run triple to extend the lead to 4-0.
Oneonta answered in the bottom of the third inning when Cody Nelson (Granville, NY/Granville Jr./Sr.) lined a two-run single that scored Sean Clinton (New City, NY/Clarkstown South) and Anthony Loia (Hopewell Junction, NY/Arlington) to cut the deficit to 4-2.
Southern Maine quickly regained momentum with a four-run fourth inning. Keblinsky highlighted the rally with a two-run double, and Vacchiano followed with an RBI single as the Huskies pushed the lead to 8-2.
The Huskies continued to tack on runs in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings to pull away for the 13-2 win.
Keblinsky led Southern Maine's offense with a 4-for-5 performance that included five RBI, while Kyle Douin also had four hits and scored three times. Vacchiano added three RBI for the Huskies.
For Oneonta, Nelson drove in both runs while Carlos Almanzar (Brooklyn, NY/John Jay Campus) and Anthony Loia (Hopewell Junction, NY/Arlington) each collected two hits.
Colin McDonald earned the win for Southern Maine, tossing a complete-game seven innings while allowing two runs on six hits and striking out seven. Caleb Nelson (Granville, NY/Granville Jr./Sr.) took the loss for the Red Dragons.
Game 2: Southern Maine 5, Oneonta 1
Southern Maine completed the sweep with a 5-1 victory in the second game behind early offense and strong pitching.
The Huskies jumped out quickly, scoring twice in the first inning and adding two more runs in the second to build a 4-0 advantage. They added another run in the fourth inning to stretch the lead to five.
Oneonta broke up the shutout in the sixth inning when the Red Dragons pushed across a run from sophomore Joseph Monserrat (Delmar, NY/Bethlehem Central), but they were unable to generate additional offense as Southern Maine closed out the win.
Carson Black earned the victory for the Huskies, while Zachary Rowe (Hudson, NY/Taconic Hills) was charged with the loss for Oneonta. Southern Maine finished with six hits compared to five for the Red Dragons.
Oneonta next plays Vassar on Sunday, March 15 at 3:30 p.m. at Northeast Regional (Park 2).
