The
Canisius College baseball team broke open a tie game with a four-run eighth and
three-run ninth to defeat the Iona College Gaels 17-12 on Sunday afternoon and
complete the weekend sweep. The Golden Griffins, who have won four of their
last five games, improve to 9-14 overall and start 3-0 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference for the third time in the last four years.
Senior
Brian Burton went 3-for-5 with three
runs scored, two home runs and six RBI. Sophomore Chris Gruarin was 2-for-5 with three RBI and three runs scored
while freshman Jose Torralba, junior
Drew Pettit and freshman Ryan Coppinger each had two hits on the day.
The
teams were scoreless through the first three innings before Canisius scored
three runs in the top of the fourth. Burton hit a one-out, solo homer to get
Canisius on the board. Pettit was then hit by a pitch and moved to second on a
wild pitch. Freshman Shane Zimmer
followed with an RBI single to score Pettit and sophomore Kevin
Whitehead brought Zimmer home with an RBI double.
After
Iona (7-13, 0-3 MAAC) scored five runs in the bottom of the fourth to chase
Canisius starter Chris Cox, each
team scored once in the sixth as the Gaels held a 6-4 lead. Canisius took the
lead with a six-run top of the seventh, sending 11 batters to the plate. Torralba
had an RBI single and Gruarin followed with a homer to give Canisius a 7-6
lead. The Griffs extended the lead on an RBI single from sophomore Frank Polino along with two runs
scoring later in the inning on wild pitches.
The
Gaels came right back with a four-run bottom of the seventh to tie the game at
10-10. Canisius took control of the game with four runs in the eighth and three
more in the ninth. Burton hit his second homer of the day, this time a
three-run shot, and senior Andrew Russo
hit a solo homer in the eighth as well. In the ninth, Torralba had an RBI
double and Burton had a two-RBI double to put Canisius give Canisius a seven-run lead.
Redshirt junior Tim Seil (1-0) earned his first career victory as five Canisius pitchers saw action on the day.
Canisius
is scheduled to start a five-game homestand on Tuesday, when the Golden Griffins host St. Bonaventure.
First pitch for the 2011 Home Opener is set for 4 p.m.
