Baseball 4/23/2009 1:00:00 AM Canisius College Athletics

Baseball Defeats Le Moyne 10-1

Freshman Benson Merritt picked up his first collegiate victory while senior Branson Joseph had five RBIs as the Canisius College baseball team defeated Le Moyne 10-1 on Wednesday afternoon at Dick Rockwell Field.

Canisius improves to 22-17 overall and has won 10 of its last 13 games as the Griffs move to a season-high five games over .500.

Joseph was one of two Golden Griffins with three hits on the day with his three hits giving Joseph 200 for his career. Junior Ian Choy was 3-for-5 with a team-high three runs scored. Senior Alec Cabello was 2-for-5 with two RBIs while sophomore Brian Burton drew two walks and scored two runs.

Merritt went six innings and allowed only one hit, which didn't come until the fifth inning. The freshman walked three and struck out four as he retired the first eight batters on the day.

Canisius scored twice in the first inning, as Connor Burke led off with a walk and Choy followed with a single. Senior Kevin Mailloux laid down a sacrifice bunt to put the runners in scoring position. Joseph would double down the right-field line to score Burke and Choy

Canisius added three runs in the third, which all came with two outs. Joseph singled up the middle to score Choy, who led off the inning with a double. Joseph stole second and moved to third on an error while a walk to Burton put runners on the corners. Steve McQuail reached on the second Le Moyne error of the inning, with Joseph scoring on the play and Burton moving to third. Cabello followed with a single to shortstop to score Burton and make it 5-0.

The Griffs doubled their lead and broke the game open with a five-run fourth inning. Burke reached on catcher's interference and scored on a double from Choy. After a one-out walk to Shayne Willson, Joseph doubled home both runners. Joseph would be caught stealing, but Burton walked and scored on a double from McQuail. Cabello then singled home McQuail to make it 10-0, as the Griffs sent 10 batters to the plate in the inning.

Three Canisius relievers each threw an inning of relief to close out the victory for Merritt. Freshman Alek Brown pitched around a leadoff double in the seventh, senior Aaron Boag allowed a run in the eighth and sophomore Josh Marshall threw a scoreless ninth inning.

Canisius continues its stretch of seven of nine away from home with a three-game series at first-place Manhattan this weekend. Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled to start at 12 p.m.

Game Notes: Joseph had five RBI for the second time this season, also recording five at Rider on April 4, and took over the team lead with 36 RBI on the season... Canisius batted around in an inning for the 16th time this season... Kevin Mahoney wasn't in the lineup for the first time this season, ending his consecutive games played streak at 80... Choy matched his career high with the three runs scored... Joseph was caught stealing for the first time in nine attempts and first time since April 4... Canisius has committed four errors in the last eight games... The Griffs have now won three straight games at Le Moyne... Merritt also took a no-hitter into the fifth inning at St. Bonaventure on March 24.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#36 Aaron Boag: P; 5' 11"; Senior

#31 Alek Brown: P; 5' 10"; Freshman

#5 Connor Burke: 1B/OF; 6' 0"; Senior

#33 Brian Burton: 1B; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#22 Alec Cabello: SS; 5' 10"; Senior

#17 Ian Choy: OF; 5' 9"; Junior

#2 Branson Joseph: OF; 6' 0"; Senior

#4 Kevin Mahoney: 3B; 6' 0"; Senior

#12 Kevin Mailloux: 2B; 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior

#30 Josh Marshall: P; 5' 9"; Sophomore

#1 Steve McQuail: IF; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#27 Benson Merritt: P; 6' 1"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#36 Aaron Boag
: 5' 11"; Senior
: P

#31 Alek Brown
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: P

#5 Connor Burke
: 6' 0"; Senior
: 1B/OF

#33 Brian Burton
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: 1B

#22 Alec Cabello
: 5' 10"; Senior
: SS

#17 Ian Choy
: 5' 9"; Junior
: OF

#2 Branson Joseph
: 6' 0"; Senior
: OF

#4 Kevin Mahoney
: 6' 0"; Senior
: 3B

#12 Kevin Mailloux
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior
: 2B

#30 Josh Marshall
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: P

#1 Steve McQuail
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: IF

#27 Benson Merritt
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: P