Brandywine Rallies Fall Short Against St. Joseph’s

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – A pair of seventh-inning rallies fell short for Penn State Brandywine as the Lions dropped both ends of a doubleheader to St. Joseph's (Maine) by scores of 7-5 and 2-1 on Sunday afternoon.

Game One: St. Joseph's 7, Penn State Brandywine 5

Brandywine nearly rallied from five runs down, scoring three times during the seventh inning, but the Lions' comeback fell short in the 7-5 loss.

The Lions trailed 6-0 entering the top of the fifth inning before striking for a pair of runs. Daniel Rohlsen (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) and Ryan Snyder (Aston, Pa./Sun Valley) recorded back-to-back run-scoring singles to put Brandywine on the board.

Brandywine's first six batters reached base in the seventh as the Lions threatened to take the lead. Snyder was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in a run, while Ryan Brown (Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem) and David Kursman (Pennsauken, N.J./Pennsauken) followed with RBI singles to make the score 7-5. The Lions threatened for more with the bases loaded and no outs, but a line-drive double play and a groundout ended the rally.

Ian Merrin (Upper Chichester, Pa./Chichester) recorded two of Brandywine's eight hits and scored twice, while Tommy Zotollo (Washington Township, N.J./St. Joseph's Regional) also crossed home twice and Snyder drove in two runs.

Ty Coccia (West Chester, Pa./West Chester East) worked in relief for the second-straight day, allowing one run on two hits, while striking out one. Liam Nugent (Stafford, Va./Mountain View) pitched the first three innings and took the loss.

Game Two: St. Joseph's 2, Penn State Brandywine 1

Brandywine trailed by two runs entering its final at-bat, but a one-out, pinch-hit home run from Shawn Webb (Drexel Hill, Pa./Bonner-Prendie) that cleared the left-field fence cut the margin in half.

Monks' pitcher Padraig Mac Seain closed out the victory for St. Joseph's with a strikeout and a groundout as the Lions came up one run short.

Mac Seain allowed just two Brandywine hits in a complete-game effort. Nate Romberger's (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen School) fifth-inning single accounted for the Lions' first knock.

Gianni Serenelli (Fairless Hills, Pa./Conwell Egan Catholic) nearly matched Mac Seain pitch-for-pitch. He worked six innings, striking out six, while allowing two runs on five hits. Noah Walker (Bremen, Ga./Bremen) tossed a scoreless seventh inning.

Brandywine has a day off Monday before returning for a doubleheader against Elms beginning at 3:15 PM in Davenport, Fla.