BROCKPORT, N.Y. – Colin Pytlak gave up one run on two hits over five innings as host Brockport defeated Cortland, 13- 3 in seven innings, in a SUNYAC baseball matchup.
Brockport improved to 22-10 overall and 12-3 in the league. Cortland, despite the loss, remains in first place in the conference with a 13-2 mark and is 23-9 overall.
Pytlak, now 4-3 on the season, struck out five batters and walked three. Cooper Meldrim, the Golden Eagles' second reliever, entered in the top of the sixth with the bases loaded and Brockport up 6-2. He issued a walk to
Andrew Michalski (Buffalo/St. Francis) to force in a run but induced a fielder's choice force out to escape further damage. He pitched a scoreless top of the seventh and earned his second save.
Ryan Mansell was 3-for-4 with two runs, Justin Pangburn finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs, Zach Eldred was 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI and Nicholas Pastore went 2-for-5 with a homer, three RBI and two runs to account for 10 of Brockport's 14 hits. Pastore's three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh ended the game as it created the 10-run margin.
Brockport scored twice in the second on a two-out error and two more in the third on an Eldred RBI double and Ryan Voight RBI single. The lead grew to 6-0 in the fourth on a passed ball and a Pangburn RBI single.
Cortland scored in the fifth when
Dylan Tierney (East Greenbush/Columbia) led off with a walk and eventually scored on a two-out
Chris Bonacci (Syracuse/West Genesee) triple. The Red Dragons scored twice in the sixth without a hit as
Mat Bruno (Rye),
Kameron Hartenstein (Meriden, CT/Maloney) and
Mitchell Kelly (Webster/Webster Thomas) all walked, Bruno scored on a wild pitch,
Matthew Krafft (Cornwall) walked to re-load the bases and Michalski drew his RBI walk.
Brockport responded with an Eldred two-run single in the bottom of the sixth, and its five-run seventh featured a Zach Harter leadoff homer, a run on a two-out error and Pastore's three-run homer.
Will McCarthy (Farmingdale) suffered his first loss in six decisions this spring. He gave up four runs, two earned, on four hits in two and two thirds innings. He struck out three and walked one.
Cortland will travel to Ithaca for a non-league game Wednesday at 4 p.m.
