University of Rochester Athletics

CORTLAND, NY – A ninth inning rally came up just short for the University of Rochester baseball team as host SUNY Cortland earned a 7-5 victory in non-league action on Wednesday evening.
 
The Red Dragons, ranked #3 in the latest D3Baseball.com poll, move to 23-5 on the season while Rochester slips back to .500 at 10-10 on the year.
 
The Yellowjackets were led in this one by senior Steve Eychner who went 2-4 with 3 RBI and classmate Matt Todd who was 2-3 with a double, stolen base and two runs scored.  Freshman Grant Kilmer added two hits and a run.
 

Cortland, the defending national champions, were paced by Connor Griffin who was 2-4 with a double and 3 RBI and Paul Dondero who added two hits, including a triple and two runs scored.
 
Rochester was able to strike first, scoring two runs in the top of the 1st inning.  After two leadoff walks and a balk to put runners on second and third, Eychner lifted a sac fly to score the first run.  The next batter, freshman Aiden Finch, then grounded out to shortstop, scoring Pete Carrier for a 2-0 UR lead.
 
The Red Dragons then answered right back in the bottom of the frame with three runs to grab the lead.  Griffin had the big two-out hit in the inning, singling to center field to score two runs.
 
The 'Jackets pulled even on the scoreboard in the fourth when Jake Meyerson scampered home on a wild pitch.
 
Cortland went ahead in the fifth inning with a single run and then plated two more in a crazy sixth to go ahead 6-3.  In the sixth, Cortland sent six batters to the plate and all six reached base, but the Red Dragons could only muster two runs as two runners got thrown out at the plate and a third was out a 3rd base.
 
The seventh inning saw Rochester get a run back with an infield single from Eychner, but Cortland responded right back with a Griffin RBI double.
 
UR tried to rally with two outs in the ninth.  Todd doubled and Carrier drew a walk to send the tying run to the plate in Eychner.  The senior singled up the middle, plating Todd.  Finch then stepped up as the go-ahead run at the plate and his flyout to left was initially misjudged by Cortland's Nick Hart, but he would recover and make a leaping catch to seal the victory.
 
Rochester returns to action this weekend in a key Liberty League showdown with 1st place Union College.  Union and UR were ranked 1-2 in the Liberty League coaches preseason poll.  Saturday's doubleheader at Towers Field starts at 1 pm.