TROY, NY — The RIT baseball team (6-4, 2-0 Liberty League) started Liberty League conference play with two victories at Rensselaer (5-11, 0-2 Liberty League) Sunday afternoon at Robison Field. The Tigers came back from down seven runs in the second game to complete the doubleheader sweep. They scored 26 combined runs, winning 14-2 and 12-11, respectively.
 
"Today was a great day," said RIT head coach Rob Grow. "For the second time in three games, we had the will and capability to come back late in the game. We are very proud of how the boys are competing."
 
Freshman Navada Waterman (Coudersport, PA/Coudersport) was a combined 5-for-8 on the day, with three RBIs and five runs scored. He came up clutch in game two, sending home the final three runs of the game, including a two-out, two-run double to give RIT a 12-11 lead in the top of the ninth inning.
 
In the first game, the Tigers dominated from start to finish, recording a 14-2 victory.
 
Daniel Zeglen (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) and Waterman led the way for RIT in game one. Waterman was 2-for-2 with a triple and four runs scored, while Zeglen was 2-for-3 with four RBIs and a pair of runs scored. Brett Kajganich (North Royalton, OH/Holy Name) also scored two runs along with an RBI, while Dom Scialabba (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick) and Phil Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) each had a pair of hits. Will Gorman (Nassau, NY/Columbia), Patrick Mylott (Aurora, OH/Western Reserve Academy), Mike Myers (Hamlin, NY/Brockport), Jason Schulz (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), and Kajganich each had one hit apiece. Gorman (three RBIs) and Scialabba (two RBIs) also drove in runners.
 
On the mound, Brian Reed (Rochester, NY/Penfield) picked up his second win of the season. He pitched a complete game four-hitter, allowing just two runs to go along with six strikeouts.
 
For Rensselaer, Sam Lawrence, Thomas Desmond, Jason Ramos, and Ethann Meister each had a hit, while Lawrence and Desmond scored the two runs.
 
The Engineers used four pitchers in the game, after starter Aaron Kalish gave up the game's first seven runs (four earned) in three innings. Jack Krasovec came in for 1 1/3 innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on three hits. Griffin Kelley then came in, going for another 1 1/3 innings of hitless baseball, but allowing two more runs to score. Dan McCrevan finished the game, going for 1 1/3 innings, allowing just one run one hit, and striking out three batters.
 
The Tigers and Engineers exchanged runs in the first two innings, but a three-run third inning and five-run fourth inning gave the Tigers a commanding 9-1 lead heading into the fifth. Gorman added a two run home run in the fifth, his fourth of the season and 21st of his RIT career, as the bats stayed hot for the Tigers in the sixth and seventh innings, en route to a 14-run effort.

Gorman is now one home run shy of tying the RIT career record of 22, set by Hall of Famer Jeff Hall, who played from 1977-1980.

Game two was whole different affair, as RIT and Rensselaer combined for 23 runs in a 12-11 comeback victory by the Tigers.
 
Waterman led the way again with three hits, three RBIs, and a run, and drove in the game-tying and game-winning scores in the ninth inning. Phil Sammon (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) led both teams with five RBIs, two hits, and a run on a homer and a double. It was his second five RBI game of the week.

Mike Myers (Hamlin, NY/Brockport) (three hits and four runs scored) and Patrick Mylott (Aurora, OH/Western Reserve Academy) (2-for-2 with two runs and one RBI) also the way led offensively for the Tigers. Scialabba added one run on one hit, while Kajganich also had a hit and an RBI. Gorman drew a career-high four walks and scored twice.
 
Stevie Branche (New Paltz, NY/New Paltz) made the start on the mound for RIT, going 2 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on three hits, with four strikeouts. Nick Claver (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) came in during the third, and Tom Dillon (Oswego, NY/Oswego) pitched in the fourth and fifth innings, allowing just one run on two hits, and striking out two. Jameson Moran (Geneseo, NY/Geneseo) picked up his second win, pitching three innings of hitless ball with three strikeouts. Brett Bouchard (Fairport, NY/Fairport) earned his first save of the season, retiring three batters in a row in the ninth to close out the game.
 
Seven different Engineers scored runs in the contest, while Justin Valente finished the game with a team-high three RBIs. Starting pitcher Brendan McNerney pitched six innings, allowing nine runs (four earned) on seven hits, with four strikeouts. Adam Aponte came in for 2 2/3 innings in relief, allowing three runs (one earned) on three hits, while compiling five strikeouts to take the loss. Mike Paleologopoulos came in to get the final out in the top of the ninth for the Engineers, allowing one hit and a walk.
 
RIT took a quick 4-2 lead after two innings, before Rensselaer's bats warmed up. The Engineers put up eight runs in the third inning, giving them a lead of 10-4, and eventually 11-4 after the fifth.
 
Facing a seven-run deficit, the Tigers mounted their second big comeback win of the week. They piled on five runs in the sixth, and one more in the seventh, cutting the Engineer lead to 11-10. A two-out two-RBI double by Waterman in the top of the ninth flipped the score in favor of the Tigers, and they sealed the win with a 1-2-3 bottom half of the ninth inning.
 
RIT and Rensselaer will face off on Monday with another doubleheader at Robison Field, beginning at 1 p.m.