The Binghamton baseball team traveled to Albany, New York to take on Albany in an America East (AE) conference series over the weekend. Despite dropping game one, the Bearcats bounced back to take the final two games of the series and came out of the weekend with a 2-1 series win against the Great Danes.

“[Albany] was a good ball club,” said Binghamton head Coach Tim Sinicki. “They’re a pretty talented team … I was proud of the way our guys rallied from the loss on Friday night to win Saturday and Sunday and take the series. It’s a good series win for us on the road.”

In the first game of the series, the Great Danes (8-29-1, 2-16 AE) came out of the gates hot, plating two runs in the bottom of the first to take an early 2-0 lead over BU (24-17, 10-8 AE). Albany then added two more runs in the fourth to take a commanding 4-0 lead over the Bearcats. Eventually, in the sixth, the Bearcats scored their first and only run of the game, courtesy of an RBI single from sophomore catcher Evin Sullivan. After scoring one run each in the seventh and eighth innings, the Great Danes took game one 6-1.

“It’s hard to say [why the team struggled on offense],” Sinicki said. “We were playing from behind and [Albany’s] kid did a good job just kind of throwing strikes, mixing three pitches for strikes and kind of just kept us at bay.”
The Bearcats got the scoring going for the series’ second contest when senior designated hitter Zachary Taylor was hit by a pitch in the second inning with the bases loaded, bringing home senior first baseman Kevin Gsell.

The offense continued to tack on runs in the third and fourth innings with solo home runs from junior outfielders Tommy Reifler and Mike Gunning as the Bearcats took a 3-0 lead. While the Great Danes eventually got on the board in the bottom of the seventh, Binghamton responded with four more runs of its own in the eighth as the visitors expanded their lead to six. However, Albany would not give up, plating three runs in the eighth, cutting the deficit to three runs. Despite scraping across one run in the ninth, the Great Danes’ comeback fell short as the Bearcats captured game two 7-5.

“Our kids did a great job of just putting what happened on Friday night in the rearview mirror and finding a way to win the game on Saturday heading into today,” Sinicki said. “It’s tough to play from behind so getting those runs early was really important for us, and I’m glad our offense found a way to do that.”

In the rubber match of the series, Binghamton came out of the gates hot. In the top of the second, the Bearcats put up six runs, which included a three-run home run from sophomore infielder Nick Roselli, as they jumped out to a sizable lead over the Great Danes. However, in the bottom of the inning, the Great Danes responded with two runs of their own, cutting Binghamton’s lead to four.

The Bearcats would go on to add three more scores in the fourth, courtesy of another three-run home run by Roselli, putting Binghamton up 9-2. After Albany added a run in the bottom of the inning, BU added another run to its tally with an RBI single from freshman infielder Mike Stellrecht, which expanded its lead to seven once again. Albany’s two-run eighth inning would not be enough as the Bearcats scored two runs of their own in the ninth, securing a 12-5 victory.

“We did a good job early on, getting some runs early which always definitely helps the pitching staff,” Sinicki said. “[Roselli] had two three-run homers … he was really good all weekend so he continues to be an important guy for us in our lineup.”

Binghamton will stay on the road as it continues AE play against Bryant on Friday, May 12. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. at Conaty Park in Smithfield, Rhode Island.