TEANECK, N.J. - FDU Baseball (17-9, 11-2 NEC) used a three run third, and a four run seventh to top the UMES Hawks (5-20, 4-9 NEC) by a final score of 7-3. The Knights were led by a great effort from the pitching staff, as FDU got good outings from starter Joe Barbarino,
Chris Messina, and closer
Nick Noble.
Barbarino spent the first two innings pitching around some traffic, but was able to record zeroes throughout his outing, giving the chance for the Knights offense to open the scoring, which FDU did in the third inning.
Travis Stroh started the scoring by hitting his fifth homer of the season, to make it a 2-0 score. Just two batters later,
Hunter Ray cleared the fence for his NEC leading 11th round tripper of the season, and the Knights held a 3-0 advantage in the third inning.
The Hawks would score their first run with a RBI single in the top of the sixth, and then the Knights would punch back in the bottom of the seventh, with a four run inning which featured a three run double by
Jimmy Mantuano followed by a
Jeremy Cheeseman RBI groundout that made the game 7-1 FDU.
UMES would tack on two late runs on FDU closer
Nick Noble, but the Knights would hold it down from there, getting to the finish line as 7-3 winners in the first ballgame of the series. Thursday's win against UMES marks the 17th of the season for FDU, eclipsing the club's win total from a season ago.
The Knights and Hawks will meet for game two of the series at Naimoli Family Baseball Complex, with first pitch of game two set for a 1 p.m. first pitch. The game will be streamed on NEC Front Row with Charlie Carbonetto on the call.
