April 30, 2003
Box Score
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The Lafayette baseball team surrendered an early four-run lead and lost to Rutgers 10-7 on Wednesday in non-conference action at Metzgar Field. Rutgers scored three runs in the top of the 10th inning with the winning run coming plateward on a Leon Shade single.
Lafayette scored five runs in the first inning and led until the eighth inning. Jason Boyd drove in the Leopards' first run with a single through the left side, and Matt Tambellini made it 2-1 with his RBI on a bungled fielder's choice. Sean Lesser connected for the big hit of the first inning, smacking a bases-clearing double down the right field line to give Lafayette a 5-1 lead after the first.
The Leopards padded their lead with a run in the third inning. Rob Fioretti, who spent the game in the No. 9 spot away from his usual lead-off position, connected for the first of his three hits, a double that scored Ted Kramer who had reached on a bunt single.
Lafayette starting pitcher Tom Soldan pitched into the sixth inning. In that inning, Rutgers cut the lead to 6-2 on a Steve Normane solo home run. Soldan threw six full innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits while striking out four.
The Rutgers (23-14) bats started to heat up in the seventh and eighth innings. The Scarlet Knights plated two runs in the seventh on an RBI-groundout by Jeff Grose and an infield single from Matt Wolski, both of which came off Lafayette reliever Don Smith.
The visitors took a 7-6 lead with three runs in the top of the eighth inning. Shade's single off Lafayette reliever Paul Fischetti scored two runs to tie the game, 6-6. Graig Badger doubled him home to give Rutgers a one-run advantage.
Lafayette (12-22) managed to tie the game, 7-7, in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs and no runners on, head coach Joe Kinney went to the bench for pinch hitter Adam Bucci. Bucci responded with a screeching single to right. Fioretti's third hit of the game put runners on first and second with two outs. Jeff Rodgers came to the plate and singled to right to score Tripp Williams who had pinch run for Bucci. The rally ended, however, when Fioretti was cut down try to score from first.
Neither team could muster any offense in the ninth, so the game went to extra innings tied at 7-7. In the top of the 10th, Hank Fichtner took the mound for Lafayette. Fichtner walked the first batter, Alberto Vasquez. Vasquez moved all the way to third when Fichtner's pick-off throw went wide. Shade singled him home to give Rutgers an 8-7 lead. Later in the inning, Fichtner was lifted in favor of Brandon Ripley. Ripley gave up an RBI-single to left that scored one run, and an error on the play allowed another to score.
Trailing 10-7 going into the bottom of the 10th inning, the Leopards were unable to get anything going offensively and went three up and three down to end the game.
Fichtner (1-1) was charged with the loss after being responsible for two runs (one earned) in one third of an inning. Chris Lillis (1-2) threw the last two innings of the game for Rutgers to earn the win. He did not allow hit and struck out two.
The two teams combined for 12 errors, with Lafayette committing seven and Rutgers five.
The Leopards return to action on Friday when they host East Stroudsburg at 4 p.m.
