Box Score CANTON, N.Y. – Although the Plattsburgh State baseball team pounded out 12 hits against the St. Lawrence pitching staff, the Cardinals couldn’t slow down the Saints’ offense in a 15-4 setback to their North Country foes at Tom Fay Field on Wednesday afternoon.
With the loss, Plattsburgh State falls to 9-17 while the Saints improved to 13-8 thanks to 17 hits during the afternoon engagement.
Receiving his second start of the season, junior lefty Colin Crawford got knocked around by the St. Lawrence lineup in his sole inning of work. Crawford gave up five hits and four runs to the Saints in the bottom of the first and things didn’t get much better for the Cardinals from there.
Looking to cool down the St. Lawrence bats, freshman Ross Levinson took the ball and headed out to the mound in the bottom of the second only to give up another five runs to the home team on another five hits.
Brian Magovney gave the Saints two of those runs with one swing as he blasted the first of two home runs in the tilt.
After St. Lawrence added an additional pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth to take an 11-0 lead, Plattsburgh State finally broke up the shutout in the fifth. After JD Springer reached on a one-out double, Shane Houppert brought his teammate around with a double of his own.
Houppert was in turn plated by Brian Latulipe who laced a two-out single to left field before the frame came to a close. St. Lawrence tacked on yet another run in the bottom of the fifth before Houppert drove in Springer for the second time with yet another two-base hit in the top of the sixth.
Ben Weightman’s two-out RBI double in the eighth scored Chris Pescetti for the final Plattsburgh State run of the afternoon before St. Lawrence put up a three-spot in the home half of the inning.
Carter Franz mashed a two-out two-run long ball off of Plattsburgh State reliever Joe Leddy to cap off the scoring.
Crawford fell to 0-4 on the season while Frank Grady (1-0) picked up the win for St. Lawrence. Houppert went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs while Latulipe and Springer were each 2-for-4.
Plattsburgh State will remain on the road as they re-engage in SUNYAC action this weekend with a three-game series against New Paltz. The Cardinals and Hawks will play the first nine-inning game of the series at Loren Campbell Memorial Field with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday.
