MCC nine splits twinbill with Lackawanna

LACKAWANNA, Penn. - The MCC baseball team split a doubleheader with host Lackawanna College Thursday, winning the opener 12-8 before dropping the nightcap 10-9.

The Tribunes (20-23) will travel to Ithaca Saturday for a pair against the Ithaca JVs before returning home to play the Ontario Terriers, Sunday at 1 p.m., in the regular season finale.

Monroe jumped out quickly in game one with five runs in the first inning, highlighted by a two-run triple from Hunter Merrill. The Tribs then tacked on four more in the second. Connor Lewis and Alex Saville had RBI hits and two more came around to score on a Falcon error.

Rayshelon Carolina drove in a run in the third with a base hit, and Tommy LaCongo homered in the fourth to make it 11-0.

Lackawanna scored four runs in the fifth and four in the seventh to make it a ballgame, but Monroe was able to close it out.

Ellington Hopkins and Carolina had three hits apiece and Lewis, Saville, and LaCongo all added two.

The Falcons used a seven-run fifth inning to erase an early deficit in game two and ended up walking off with the victory on a hit in the seventh.

MCC took the lead with single runs in the first and fourth on sac flies from Lewis and Angel Rosario. Jimmy Latona then gave the Tribunes a 4-0 lead in the fifth when he knocked a two-run double off the wall.

Lackawanna then responded with their big inning to go up 7-4.

Monroe came back with four more in the top of the sixth as Hopkins and Lewis came through with RBI hits. But the Falcons again rallied to score two and take a 9-8 lead.

MCC tied the game in the top of the seventh as Merrill scored on a wild pitch, but the Falcons were able to load the bases in the bottom half before a single brought the winning run home.

Lewis finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Hopkins, Latona, and Merrill had the only other hits.