Michael Byrns #13 (photo by Brad Babcock).
Fredonia State baseball put together a complete day on both sides of the ball, sweeping Plattsburgh in a doubleheader behind good offense in Game One and a dominant pitching performance in Game Two. It was the Blue Devils' first three-game sweep of the Cardinals since the 2016 season.
Game One: Fredonia State 8, Plattsburgh 5
Plattsburgh jumped out to an early lead, putting Fredonia in a 5-0 hole after a big second inning. The rally was highlighted by a three-run home run from Jonathan Beale. The Devils began to chip into Plattsburgh's lead when Andrew Tucker sparked the offense with a double and Ryan Mettler hitting a RBI single to get the Devils on the board at 5-1.
The momentum completely changed in the fifth inning when Fredonia State erupted for five runs. Vito Verni scored on a Nick Vitelli RBI single, and Tucker delivered the biggest swing of the game for the Devils with a two-run home run shot to center field to bring Fredonia State within one. Later in the inning, Tucker Schwab lined a two-RBI single to give the Devils a 6-5 lead.
The Devils added insurance in the seventh inning when Brayden Willats launched a two-run home run to extend the lead to 8-5 which held as the final score. Telfourd Wynne earned the win in relief for Fredonia State, tossing 3.1 scoreless innings, while Michael Gangloff closed the game with a scoreless ninth to secure the save.
Game Two: Fredonia State 4, Plattsburgh 1
Fredonia State got on the board in the first inning when Domenic Hickock lined an RBI single to right field, bringing home Vitelli for a 1-0 lead. Plattsburgh, however, evened things up in the fourth inning, scoring an unearned run to tie the game at 1-1.
In the sixth inning Ryan Mettler delivered an RBI single up the middle to score Hickock, and later Willats added a sacrifice fly to bring in Mettler and make it 3-1. Fredonia State added another run in the eighth after Josh Monti came through with an RBI single up the middle to extend the lead to 4-1. The Devils stayed in control down the stretch and went on to secure the win.
On the mound, Connor Burkestone was dominant from start to finish. He threw a complete game, allowing just four hits and one unearned run while keeping Plattsburgh off the board over the final five innings. Offensively, Mettler led the way for the Devils with two hits, two runs scored, and an RBI, while Hickock added two hits and an RBI to secure the series sweep over Plattsburgh.
With this win Fredonia State improves to 4-11 on the season and 3-1 in SUNYAC play.
