May 25, 2018
Box Score
STATEN ISLAND, NY -- Siena Baseball scored nine consecutive runs punctuated by a five-run sixth, as the fourth seeded Saints knocked defending champion, preseason favorite, and No. 5 seed Marist out of the MAAC Tournament with a 9-5 elimination game triumph at Richmond County Bank Ballpark. Siena advances to play in another MAAC Tournament elimination game Friday at 3:30 p.m. against No. 2 seed Quinnipiac.
Second Team All-MAAC selection Joe Drpich homered twice and delivered the game-tying two-run double for Siena (21-34), which has now won multiple MAAC Tournament games in each of its last seven appearances. Tom Sutera came out of the bullpen for the third time in two days and tossed 6.1 superb innings of relief to earn the win for the Saints, which defeated Marist (27-23) for the second time in as many days.
A day after Siena hit an early grand slam to claim a quick lead against the Red Foxes in the MAAC Tournament opener, Marist returned the favor. Tyler Kapuscinski's bases clearing shot just over the wall in right center staked the Red Foxes to a commanding 4-0 lead in the third. Kapuscinski finished with four hits and knocked in all five runs for Marist, which had eliminated sixth seeded Niagara 6-3 in the preceding game.
The Saints slowly chipped away at the deficit, halving their hole on solo home runs off the bat of Drpich in the third and fifth innings respectively. The multiple home run performance was Drpich's second of the season.
Siena then batted around in sending 11 men to the plate during the decisive five-run sixth. Drpich drove in each of the Saints' first four runs, as his two-run double down the left field line knotted the score at 4-4. The senior slugger achieved the 11th 50 RBI performance in Siena Baseball single season history with his monster effort.
Classmate Jordan Bishop then singled home Drpich to put the Saints in front. Two batters later, fellow senior Dan Lowndes added a two-run single to cap the rally. Siena added insurance runs in the eighth on an RBI triple from Jonathan Crimmin and a run-scoring single by Zach Durfee, to hand the Red Foxes their fifth loss in six games to end their season.
Sutera scattered six hits and just one run in a yeoman like effort. He walked only one batter and struck out five, as the Saints defeated Marist for the fourth time in five tries this spring.
Siena will look to keep its MAAC Championship aspirations alive when the Saints face the Bobcats next on Friday. Quinnipiac captured the regular season series from Siena, taking two of three Apr. 13-14 in Connecticut. The Bobcats dropped their MAAC Tournament opener 11-3 to third seeded Canisius earlier on Thursday to fall into the loser's bracket in the double-elimination format.
