Garden City, N.Y.- In the opening round of the Northeast-10 conference playoffs, the newly ranked No. 6 Adelphi University baseball team dropped a heartbreaker to Southern Connecticut State University, 9-6 in Tuesday's play-in game.
Earlier Tuesday afternoon, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association (NCBWA) announced that the Panthers moved up to No. 6 in the nation, improving by one spot on the Top-25 list from last week.
Lucas Terwilliger led Adelphi (34-7-1, 22-3-1 NE10), with three hits and one RBI, while Michael Cattani went 2-for-4, and five other batters added one hit in the loss. Brett Malm's double in the third inning tied the career record for single-season doubles, as well as logged his 200th career hit.
The Owls came out hot on offense in the second inning, launching two home runs across three at-bats, giving the visitors a 3-0 lead after two.
In the Panthers half, its first run of the game came off a free pass with the bases loaded, walking in a previously walked Cattani.
SCSU (20-26, 11-15 NE10) added one more run in the third off an RBI single to go up 4-1, however Adelphi had an answer in the bottom half, scoring back-to-back runs, first on a throwing error, followed by an RBI single off Cattani's bat to score Malm. The shortstop got on-base to lead off the inning on a double down the left field line.
Adelphi scored the tying run and snatched the lead from the Owls in the fourth, as Thomas Colombo's ground out to the second baseman scored Jordan Milo from third. In the next at bat, Lawrence Cicileo's single through the left side scored Jonathan Iadevaia, making the scoreboard read 5-4 in favor of the Panthers.
Two innings later, another Owls home run to right center tied the game at five, and later took the lead once again on a free pass with the bases loaded in the seventh inning.
Terwilliger tied the game for the third time on an infield single to make it six-all in the seventh. With the same score going into the ninth, the Owls sealed the victory scoring the final three runs. Two consecutive singles got things started before a double up the middle plated two. The final run was scored thanks to an RBI single before the final out.
Tom Ambrosino was dealt the loss after nine innings, making his record read 2-1.
The Panthers, ranked first in the region in the last edition of the NCAA Division II regional rankings, will next learn if they receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament when the full bracket is revealed on Sunday, May 12 at 10 p.m.
About Adelphi Athletics
A regionally and nationally competitive NCAA Division II institution located in Garden City, N.Y., Adelphi University has been a proud member of the Northeast-10 Conference since 2009.
Winners of 16 NCAA Division II National Championships and four NE10 Presidents' Cups, Panther athletes have excelled at the conference, regional and national level, both on the field of play and in the classroom. In turn, the Adelphi athletic department is committed to fostering an environment of diversity, inclusion, equity and success where its student-athletes can thrive both on campus and off.
Stay connected with Adelphi Athletics by following the Panthers at aupanthers.com or via social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and wear your Panther pride by shopping official Adelphi Panthers gear at our licensed team store.
