SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY (April 8, 2018) -- The Vassar College baseball team took the first game of a Liberty League doubleheader Sunday 8-4 over Skidmore College to earn the series victory from Castle Diamond, before falling 3-1 in game two to finish the four-game set. 

Game 1 - Vassar 8, Skidmore 4
The Vassar College bullpen went 5.2 innings in the opening game, and held the host Thoroughbreds to just two earned runs as Vassar scored in each of the first three innings to take and hold the momentum in the victory. 

VC got a lead-off single to start the game by Tanner Blough, and later scored on a wild pitch after moving to third on a throwing error. Later in the frame, senior Matt Hernandez ripped a double down the left-field line to score senior Bobby Kinne. 

The Brewers added another run in the top of the second to take a 3-0 lead, as junior Bryan Rubin walked, stole second base and moved the third and scored on back-to-back wild pitches. Skidmore got the run back in the bottom of the second, but senior John Madsen came in out of the 'pen an inning-ending double play to stop the Skidmore rally. 

Vassar tallied another run in the top of the third, as Matt Schwartz doubled to left field to start the rally. After sophomore Evan Trausch was hit by a pitch, the pair moved up a base on another wild pitch. One batter later, sophomore Daniel Bonfiglio scored Schwarz on a ground out to make the score 4-1. 

Skidmore added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth to trim the VC lead to 4-3, but Vassar answered with three runs in the top of the fifth, two coming on sacrifice flies by Bonfiglio and Rubin. The Thoroughbreds pushed one across in the bottom of the fifth, but the Brewers responded in the sixth as Eric Strickland doubled, stole third and scored on a throwing error by the catcher. 

That was plenty of offense for the Brewers, as freshman Logan Willans pitched two scoreless innings to shut the door. Schwartz was 2-for-3 with a run scored for VC, while freshman Gunnar Widercrantz came off the bench to go 1-for-2. Rubin was 1-for-1 with a walk, HBP and two stolen bases, and Bonflglio added two RBI and a stolen base. 

VC starter Joe Conti allowed one run and one hit on 1.1 innings of work, before handing the ball to Madsen who earned the win with his seven-pitch performance to move to 2-0 on the season. Junior Alex Hartnett allowed two earned runs over three innings as well for Vassar. 

Game 2 - Skidmore 3, Vassar 1
Sophomore starter Mitchell Mullock was strong for the Brewers, working 5.1 innings while allowing four hits and one earned run, but was out-dueled by Skidmore's Spencer Meyer as the Thoroughbreds scored single runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth to salvage the final game of the series. 

Neither team scored until the top of the fifth when Vassar plated a run after Rubin led off with a single,going to second on a sacrifice bunt from Chris Lee. The junior would come around thanks to a Blough single up the middle. Skidmore got on the board in the bottom of the sixth, tying the score on a sacrifice fly by Justin LaRose. 

Skidmore took its first lead of the day in the top of the seventh, as Andrew Knight doubled in a run with two outs to make the score 2-1. Vassar put two runners on in the top of the eighth on singles by Hernandez and Trausch, but Andrew Aikins was able to pitch out of the jam. Skidmore got an insurance run on a Pat Geiger homer in the eighth, but Vassar didn't go quietly. 

In the top of the ninth, Rubin singled through the right side and Elliott Layne walked to put runners at first and second. In the end though, Aikins worked himself out of the jam he created, picking up the victory to move to 2-0. 

Hernandez finished 2-for-4, while Trausch and Rubin each had two hits for the Brewers. Madsen allowed no runs in his fourth appearance of the weekend for Vassar. 

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VC (9-7, 6-2 Liberty) will continue its nine-game road trip on Wednesday afternoon, traveling to Williamstown, MA to take on Williams College (3-12) in non-conference play.