Railsplitters fall in series finale at Lynn, 9-7
Published 1:34 pm Tuesday, February 19, 2019
BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Railsplitters jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first but could not hold on as the Lynn Fighting Knights rallied back to win the game and clinch the series with a 9-7 victory on Saturday afternoon at the Lynn Baseball Field.
Lincoln Memorial (6-5) was led again by first baseman Chris Salvey, who capped a monster series by going 2-for-4 with three RBI, a walk and a run scored. Will Reddick went 2-for-5 with a run scored, while Henry Moore notched his second straight multi-hit game with a 2-for-5 effort that included a run. Seth Hunt drove in a run, while Joe Stucky drove in two.
Five different players had multiple hits for Lynn (7-2), led by a 4-for-4 day for James Buckley. Luis Beltran, Shayne Fontana, Tom Archer and Alec Ojeda added two hits apiece, while Fontana tallied three RBI. Fontana, Alejandro Martinez and Anthony Sanabria all homered for the Fighting Knights, who won the series 2-1 after falling in Friday’s opener.
Devin Morris took the loss for the Railsplitters after surrendering four hits and two runs in two innings of relief, falling to 0-1 on the season. Matt Mullenbach lasted just 3.2 innings in his start, as Lynn tagged the senior righty for eight hits and three earned runs in the no decision.
Hunt walked and Nate Stinson doubled to put runners on second and third in the top of the first inning for Salvey, who scorched a single back up the middle to give the Railsplitters a 2-0 lead. A sac fly for Stucky brought another run home while some heads up base running extended the lead to 4-0 at the end of the visitor’s half of the first.
But Lynn dominated the next stretch of the game, scoring seven unanswered runs to take a 7-4 lead by the bottom of the sixth.
Fontana’s two-run blast in the bottom of the first cut the deficit in half, while Martinez hit a two-run job in the bottom of the third to tie the game. The Fighting Knights took the lead in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI groundout for Ojeda. Buckley and Ojeda then added two insurance runs with RBI hits in the sixth.
After going scoreless for a five-inning stretch, the Railsplitters rallied in the top of the seventh, pulling within two runs on an RBI single for Stucky. In the top of the eighth, Lincoln Memorial briefly tied the game back up thanks to RBI singles for Hunt and Salvey.
However, Lynn answered again in the bottom of the eighth, as Sanabria belted a one-out, go-ahead solo shot and Fontana plated another run on a fielder’s choice to make it 9-7.
Alec Hernandez then closed things out by striking out the side in the top of the ninth, earning the win to move to 2-0 on the season.
The Railsplitters left eight runners stranded on the bases and struck out nine times compared to Lynn’s seven runners stranded and four strikeouts. Lincoln Memorial also drew six walks compared to one for the Fighting Knights. Stinson walked twice and scored two runs.
The Railsplitters are back in action on Tuesday when they travel to Bristol, Tenn., for a nonconference matchup against the King Tornado. First pitch is set for 2:30 p.m.