TROY, NY – The fourth-seeded RIT baseball team (23-15) had its magical Liberty League Championship run ended on Saturday, falling to host and No. 1 seed Rensselaer (26-15) in a pair of championship contests. Rensselaer won game one, 13-9 and took game two 10-5 to win the Liberty League title and earn the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
 
RPI's Tim LeSuer was named the Liberty League Tournament Most Outstanding Player. RIT's Will Gorman (Nassau, NY/Columbia), Brett Kajganich (North Royalton, OH/Holy Name), and Zach Zabel (Clarence, NY/Clarence) were named to the All-Tournament Team. Rensselaer needed to win twice over RIT, while the Tigers needed one victory to claim its first Liberty League title.
 
"I am very proud of this team, and just as proud today as I was the last two days," said RIT head coach Rob Grow. "We showed great heart, great fight, and played with the will of champions. We are going to continue to build off this and come back even stronger next year."
 
Will Gorman (Nassau, NY/Columbia) led the Tigers by driving in five runs on Saturday, giving him a school record 46 this season, shattering the previous mark of 41, set by Jeremy Tosh in 2008. In game one, CJ Bolorin (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) also tied the single-season school record by stealing his 23rd base. Matt George also accomplished that in 2008 and Justin Smith did so the following season.
 
RIT extended its consecutive games streak with at least 10 hits to seven games. They have 98 hits over that span.

In game one, The Engineers scored a run in the first inning before RIT clawed back with single runs in both the third and fourth innings to take a 2-1 lead. In the third, Brian Battaglia (Sliver Spring, MD/James Hubert Blake) led off with a double and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Chris Barr (North Wales, PA/North Penn ). The following inning, Skip Flanagan (Framingham, MA/Bishop Feehan) led off with a two-bagger and scored on a sacrifice fly by Gorman.
 
Rensselaer broke open a close game in the fourth inning, scoring four times to take a 5-2 lead. Tyler Listing had the big hit, a three-run home run to give the Engineers a lead they would not relinquish. The Engineers would add on two more runs in the fifth on a two-run single by Shane Matthews to make it a 7-2 game.
 
In the top of the sixth, Brett Kajganich (North Royalton, OH/Holy Name) led off with a single and with two outs, Gorman launched a two-run home run over the wall in right field for his seventh of the season, cutting the Engineers lead to 7-4.
 
The Engineers would add to their lead, with five runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it a 12-4 game. RIT would not quit however, scoring twice in the seventh, and twice more in the eighth to make it a 13-8 game. Unfortunately, RIT would leave the bases loaded in both innings.
 
The two teams combined for 30 hits, with Rensselaer out-hitting RIT, 16-14. Gabriel Kurtzman-Gonzalez led the Engineers by going 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs.
 
All nine starting players had at least one hit for both teams in the opener. Gorman drove in three runs, while Zach Zabel (Clarence, NY/Clarence) hit his first collegiate home run. Kajganich, Flanagan, Bolorin, Taylor Hogan (Rochester, NY/Brighton), and Phil Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) had two hits apiece.
 
Aaron Kalish got the win on the mound for the Engineers, allowing seven hits and four runs over 5 2/3 innings. The Engineers used six relievers to close out the game.
 
Conor Herlihy (Geneseo, NY/Geneseo) took the loss for RIT, his first of the season, allowing eight hits and six runs over 4 1/3 innings. He was one of five pitchers to appear in the contest for the Tigers. Rich Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) gave RIT two good innings, allowing three hits and an unearned run.
 
In game two, Gorman stayed hot, ripping a two-run single in the top of the first inning, scoring Bolorin and Kajganich to give RIT a 2-0 lead. After Rensselaer tied the game with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning, Zabel would drive in Phil Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) in the second inning, giving RIT its final lead of the tournament, 3-2.
 
The Engineers would respond with four runs, three unearned on a pair of RIT errors to go up 6-3. RIT would come right back with two more runs in the fourth inning, as Zabel and Barr would come around to make it 6-5. RIT had runners on first and third with one out in the inning, but could not push across the tying run.
 
The game would stay 6-5 until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Rensselaer scored four times to take a 10-5 lead. Chris Holomakoff singled with the bases loaded and after an error, cleared them to make it 9-5. He would score on a passed ball to close out the scoring.
 
Both teams had 11 hits. Tyler Listing was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs for the Engineers. Greg Echeverria shook off a slow start to scatter 10 hits and four earned runs on two days rest, striking out five Tigers in 7 1/3 innings. Sean Conroy allowed a hit over the final 1 2/3 innings.
 
Barr, Kajganich, and Zabel had two hits apiece in game two for RIT. Brandon Cohall (Cortlandt Manor, NY/Walter Panas), who earned the win on Thursday and save on Friday, allowed three hits and five runs (three earned) over an inning plus in the start to take the loss. Brian Reed (Rochester, NY/Penfield) was solid in long relief for the Tigers, allowing five hits and three runs (two earned) with three strikeouts.
 
This weekend marked RIT's first postseason appearance since joining the Liberty League in 2012 and first overall since 2008. On Thursday, RIT won its first postseason game in nine years, defeating Rensselaer 10-8. Yesterday, the Tigers advanced to the championship round by defeating Clarkson, 9-5. After losing to RIT on Thursday, Rensselaer knocked off Rochester, 10-5, and Clarkson, 10-3 to advance.
 
RIT has 23 wins this season, third most in one year in program history. RIT won 24 games in 2006 and 2007. The Tigers have scored a school record 289 runs this season.
 
The Tigers finished 2-5 this season against the Engineers with all seven games taking place in the last eight days. Last weekend, the two teams closed out the Liberty League regular season schedule in Troy, with Rensselaer taking three of four games. Rensselaer leads the all-time series between the two schools, 56-19.
 
Today marked the final collegiate games for seniors Barr, Bolorin, Flanagan, Herlihy, Ethan Humbert (Rose, NY/North Rose-Wolcott), and Rich Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield).