May 4, 2005
Box Score
OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. (www.lafayette.edu) - The Lafayette baseball team wrapped up its 2005 season with an 11-5 loss at New York Institute of Technology on Wednesday afternoon. NYIT scored five runs over the fifth and sixth innings to pull away from the Leopards.
The game marked the last collegiate contest for Lafayette seniors Adam Bucci and Rob Fioretti. For Bucci, Wednesday's contest placed him in a tie as Lafayette's career leader in games played, tying 2004 graduate and former teammate Adam Rosenberg with 172. Bucci leaves the program eighth in career home runs (16) and RBI (112) and seventh in career hits (176). He finished at .300 for the season and ends his career with a career average above .300. Fioretti cranked out three hits at New York Tech and managed to drive in a pair of runs. He ends his career ranked 25th in career hits (129) and 18th in career runs scored (91). His final season was his best offensively, as he checked in with a .321 batting average.
In the game, NYIT scored three runs in the first inning and one run in the fourth off Lafayette freshman Jason Morytko to take a 4-0 lead.
The Leopards got onto the scoreboard in the third inning. Freshman Tom Hayes reached base on a walk and later scored when Fioretti drove him in with a single to right field.
Sophomore Frank Cortazar cut the NYIT lead to 4-2 with his solo home run in the top of the fourth. It was Cortazar's second home run of the week, as he also hit a solo shot against Lehigh on Sunday.
NYIT broke the game open in the fifth and sixth innings. David Johnson and Mike Kenefick (4-for-4) each drove in runs in the fifth, Morytko's final inning of work. He allowed six runs on nine hits while striking out one and walking one.
In the sixth inning, Kenefick singled home his second run of the game and Bryan Pastor (3-for-4) doubled home two more off Lafayette reliever Will Hanlon to give the Bears a 9-2 advantage. Brian Cope finished off the game on the mound for Lafayette, giving up two runs on three hits over 2.2 innings.
The Leopards managed to score a run in the seventh when Fioretti pulled a double to rightfield to bring home Matt Skellan who had reached on a walk. Then, in the ninth, Lafayette scored two more runs on RBI-groundouts by Ian Law and Nick Benvenuto to run the final to 11-5.
The Bears tossed their ace, Joe Esposito, on Wednesday and he picked up his eighth win of the season. Esposito struck out seven and surrendered three runs on five hits over 6.2 innings.
Lafayette finishes the season at 18-26 and ends in fourth place in the Patriot League standings. The Leopards will return seven of nine starters in the field and their entire pitching staff in 2006.
