PHILADELPHIA, PA – The RIT baseball team (1-1) opened the 2017 season by splitting a doubleheader on the road against Arcadia University (3-1) on the campus of La Salle University on Sunday. RIT won game one 11-2, and Arcadia took the second game 11-10.
 
"I'm very happy with how we competed for the first games of the year," said RIT head coach Rob Grow. "We have a group that will continue to work to improve as a team."
 
Temperatures were below freezing for most of the day, but that did nothing to quiet the hot bat of Will Gorman (Nassau, NY/Columbia). The senior outfielder went 6-for-9 at the plate with two home runs, a triple, a double, four RBIs, and scored six runs, while getting walked twice.
 
The Tigers won the first game 11-2, by taking an early lead and never looking back. Gorman went 3-for-5 with two home runs, a double, two RBIs and three runs scored, while fellow senior Brett Kajganich (North Royalton, OH/Holy Name) went 3-for-4 and scored three times as well. Benjamin Terzini (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) went 4-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Patrick Mylott (Aurora, OH/Western Reserve Academy) hit a solo homer in the ninth, while Daniel Zeglen (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) and Dom Scialabba (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick) each had two hits and scored a run, Zeglen also added two RBIs.
 
Brian Reed (Rochester, NY/Penfield) started the first game for the Tigers, pitching five full innings, allowing just one earned run and five hits, while striking out three batters. Brett Bouchard (Fairport, NY/Fairport) came in to pitch three scoreless innings in relief, allowing just one hit and striking out one. Nick Claver (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) closed the game out retiring three batters in a row in the bottom of the ninth.
 
For Arcadia, Avy Bermudez scored both runs, and was 1-for-1 with a double and a walk. Justin Chasmar was 1-for-2 with two RBIs. The Knights used six different pitchers, giving up 17 hits and walking two batters, but they had 11 strikeouts.
 
Gorman hit a solo home run in his first at-bat of the season, in an inning that saw the Tigers take a quick 3-0 lead on just seven at-bats. Kajganich and Terzini also scored in the inning, while Zeglen and Mike Myers (Hamlin, NY/Brockport) batted in runs.
 
Gorman scored again in the third inning after he doubled, and Terzini drove him in with an RBI single. RIT led 4-0 after the top of the third, but Arcadia got on the board in the bottom of the inning, as Chasmar drove in Bermudez on a ground out to second base.
 
The Tigers added four runs in the fifth, two in the sixth, and one more in the ninth, as Arcadia could only score once more, on an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth. Gorman added another solo homer, a lead-off hit in the top of the sixth inning, making it 9-2 at the time.
 
Claver made no mistake in the ninth for RIT, making his first collegiate appearance on three straight batters.
 
In game two, the bats were warmed up and both RIT and Arcadia had no trouble scoring.
 
Gorman's bat stayed orange hot, as he finished game two with two runs, two RBIs and a triple, going 3-for-4 at the plate. Kajganich and Mylott both had two hits and two runs, and Kajganich had two more RBIs. Scialabba led both teams with a career-high four RBIs, while Terzini also had two scores.
 
Daniel Zeglen (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) started the game on the mound for the Tigers, going three innings, allowing five runs on four hits, while striking out two and walking three. Daniel Capra (North Salem, NY/North Salem) came in during the fourth in relief, and pitched 3 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on six hits, and struck out three.
 
Claver came in during the seventh inning, and finished the game for RIT, only allowing one run on two hits in 1 1/3 innings, including one strikeout.
 
Jordan Draude led the Knights offensively, going 3-for-4 from the plate, adding three runs. Nick Ponente was right behind with two runs, while going 1-for-4 from the plate. The rest of the scoring for the Knights was balanced, with six players scoring one run each.
 
Arcadia used five pitchers, as the Tigers chased starter Joseph Warren after three innings, as he allowed four runs on five hits, while walking four and striking out four.
 
The Tigers and Knights used a combined eight pitchers in the game, with RIT out-hitting Arcadia 13-12, but the Knights won the game by a tight score of 11-10.
 
Arcadia started the contest out with three scores in the first inning, but the Tigers came right back with four of their own, taking a 4-3 lead after the top of the third.
 
Neither team scored in the fourth inning, but the Tigers tacked on five runs in the fifth and sixth, building a 9-5 lead. Arcadia put a five-spot in the seventh inning, chasing Capra from the mound for RIT. The Tigers went to the ninth inning down 11-9, and mounted a comeback, scoring once and putting runners on first and second base, but couldn't get the tying run.
 
The Tigers are back in action on Wednesday as they travel to take on Houghton College. The contest between the Tigers and Highlanders will get underway at 5 p.m.