Sports Information Department – 112 Dods Hall
Phone (716) 673-3100 / Fax (716) 673-3136

CONTACT: Jerry Reilly,
Sports Information Director

DATE: Sun., April 1, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Baseball

Devils turn triple play in loss

CORTLAND, N.Y. -- – Junior catcher Mike Zaccardo (Irondequoit) hit three home runs and drove in seven runs as nationally third-ranked Cortland defeated Fredonia, 17-6, in the opening game of a SUNYAC doubleheader. The second contest, a seven-inning game, was postponed due to rain and is scheduled to be played Monday, April 2, at 4 p.m.

Zaccardo tied a school record for homers in a game and is the first Red Dragon to hit three round-trippers since Steve Wanamaker accomplished the feat versus Oswego at home in 2002. Zaccardo hit a three-run homer in the third inning to give the Red Dragons a 5-0 lead. He added a solo shot in the fourth and a three-run homer in the seventh and finished the game 3-for-5.

Kyle Adams (Naples) was 2-for-3 and senior Phil Gavin (Rochester/Greece Olympia) and junior Kevin Malaney (Amherst) each went 2-for-4 for Fredonia State (7-9, 2-1 SUNYAC). Gavin finished with two RBI and Malaney drove in one run.

In the game’s most bizarre moment, the Blue Devils turned an unconventional triple play in the bottom of the sixth inning. With runners on second and third and no outs, a routine fly ball that was caught by right fielder Adams. The throw to the infield was cut off by the first baseman Malaney, who noticed that the runner from second had drifted away from the base. He threw to the shortstop, John Hamilton (Frewsburg), who chased the runner toward third and eventually tagged him. Right before the tag, however, the runner from third started to break for home, then tried to dive back to third but was tagged out by Hamilton to complete the triple play and end the inning.

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