OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. (Mar. 31, 2019) - The Queens College baseball team could not tap into its comeback magic on Saturday (Mar. 30) as the Knights dropped an ECC doubleheader to NYIT in Old Westbury. Queens fell by a 13-5 margin in the first game before losing a tough 5-4 decision in extra innings in the nightcap against the Bears.
Game One: NYIT 13, Queens (NY) 5
Jon Strauss led off the game with a home run for the Knights on an 0-1 count and Queens had early momentum on its side. Unfortunately for the visitors, that did not last long as NYIT chased QC starter
Jack Palma in the third inning following an eight-run outburst that included home runs by Ryan Kuskowski (a grand slam), Kieran Dowd (a first-pitch home run) and Nick Tedesco. Queens did rally for four runs in the fifth inning as Strauss and
Louis Antos each had a run-scoring single surrounding a
Ron Linsalato bases-loaded walk;
Joe O'Rourke had a sacrifice fly to drive in a run and bring the Knights within an 8-5 margin, but NYIT scored five more runs to produce the final margin.
Strauss had three hits and two RBIs in the first game for Queens while Matt Gutleber and
Brian Watters each connected on a pair of hits in the loss.
Game Two: NYIT 5, Queens (NY) 4 - Eight Innings
Dennis Buckstein was staked out to an early 1-0 lead in the second inning as Gutleber drove in Linsalato on an RBI single. The advantage grew to a 2-0 score in the following inning on an Antos run-scoring double and it swelled to a three-run edge in the next frame as
Joel Mendez drove in a run. NYIT tied the game in the fourth with a three-run spurt but Queens retook the lead in the top of the fifth inning on a grounder by
Eric Roubal. Buckstein---who struck out eight over his five-and-two-thirds innings---took the no-decision as NYIT scored a run in the seventh to tie the game and send the contest to extra innings, where the Bears ended up winning in the eighth on an RBI single by Matt DeAngelis.
Antos, Gutleber and Linsalato each had two hits for the Knights in the proverbial nightcap.
Queens will wrap up its series with NYIT on Sunday (Mar. 31) at Hennekens Stadium in Flushing, weather permitting. The game is currently set for a 3 p.m. start.
