Baseball Outlasts Tuskegee

— filed under: Top Stories, Baseball

By Chad Beattie

Published Feb 23, 2013 02:10 AM

BOCA RATON, Fla. – A walk-off RBI double by Enrique Perez in the bottom of the 10th-inning gave Lynn University’s baseball team an 8-7 victory over Tuskegee University on Friday afternoon. Paul Stortini had a great day at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a home run and four runs batted in while Joe Perrotta tossed seven innings with six strikeouts. The Fighting Knights even their record at 5-5 overall.

After going down big in the seventh inning, Tuskegee (4-4) erased a six-run deficit in the eighth and ninth frames to send the game into extra innings. Kyle Butcher came on in relief of Perrotta in the eighth and fanned two of the first three batters before surrendering four consecutive hits to cut the lead to 7-5. Andre Colon entered but gave up a RBI double before striking out Jonathan Allen for the third out.

Andrew Melchor (2-0) came in to close the door on the Golden Tigers but an error allowed a Tuskegee runner to reach base and Alexandre Henderson drove home the tying run with a sacrifice fly to left field.

The Fighting Knights took to the offensive in the 10th with Alex Freedman drawing a walk to start the frame. Two batters later, Perez smacked a line drive double into the bullpen in left field for the game-winning hit.

Tuskegee appeared to be in for a long day after Stortini drove in his first run in the bottom of the first and the Blue & White loaded the bases with no outs in the second. But Cameron Summers navigated his way through the lineup and escaped with no damage.

The Golden Tigers knotted the game at one in the fourth but the Blue & White exploded for four runs in the fifth. Stortini drove in two with a double off the wall in left center and scored off a Mike Gonzalez single up the middle. Freedman then made it 5-1 with a line drive to right center field.

Jason Matusik drove in the team’s sixth run with a single in the sixth and Stortini capped off his day with a solo home run into the trees in left center field.

Perrotta was just as impressive on the mound despite earning a no-decision. The senior right-hander allowed six hits over seven innings with one unearned run, six K’s and no walks.

Lynn closes out its three-game series against Tuskegee with a doubleheader beginning at noon on Saturday, February 22. Fans can listen to the action live at LynnFightingKnights.com and receive in-game updates by following @LUKnights on Twitter and Instagram.