DUFF, BODNAR EARN LIBERTY LEAGUE ALL STAR HONORS
May 7: St. Lawrence University junior third baseman Ryan Duff and senior pitcher Steve Bodnar earned All Liberty League honors in voting by the league’s coaches.
Duff, who was the second team all league shortstop as a rookie and second team third baseman last year, earned first team honors at third base this season. He led the Saints in hitting with a .402 average, scored 28 runs and drove in 21 and had four doubles and a triple. He was also 11-13 in steals in addition to playing solid defense at third base.
Bodnar was named to the second team as a pitcher after going 4-3 with a team leading 3.46 ERA in ten appearances. He walked 18 and struck out 55 in 52 innings.
Junior second baseman Tim Harris, who was third in the league in slugging percentage, fourth in doubles and tied for first in triples, was named honorable mention at second base.
CLARKSON ENDS SAINT SEASON WITH SWEEP
May 3: Austin Pitkin pitched a two-hit shutout in a 2-0 game one win and Mike Bresett drove in the winning run with a single in the bottom of the tenth as Clarkson ended St. Lawrence University’s baseball season with a 4-3 10-inning win in game two of a Liberty League doubleheader in Potsdam on Sunday.
The Saints, who needed to sweep the Knights to stay alive in the race for a Liberty League playoff spot, finish the year 17-18 overall and 10-14 in league play. Clarkson will take a 18-18 overall mark and a 12-9 league record into tournament play next weekend.
Pitkin walked one and struck out seven in a pitching duel with the Saints Chris Cook in game one. Cook allowed one earned run, four hits and struck out five with no walks.
Matt Giordano scored the only run Pitkin was to need when he led off the game with a triple and scored on an outfield error. The Knights added a second run in the bottom of the fifth on a hit batter and Steve Magovny’s double.
Garrett Fitzgerald got the first Saint hit in the third, a leadoff single, but was erased on a double play and Ryan Duff hit a one-out single in the seventh, but Pitkin got out o trouble with a foul out and a fielder’s choice to end the game.
Clarkson outhit the Saints 17-8 in game two, but needed an extra inning to come away with the 4-3 win,
Jason Conde, the sixth Saint pitcher of the game, took the loss as Bresett followed two walks with the game-winning single.
Clarkson scored in the bottom of the first, but the Saints tied it in the sixth as Duff walked, advanced on Tim Harris’ single and scored on Kirt Broedel’s grounder. The Knights took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the eighth, but the Saints went in front 3-2 with two in the top of the ninth. Chris Donaldson and Bryan Brennan walked with one out and Tom Pasquali hit a fielder’s choice and Duff singled to drive in the runs.
Clarkson tied it in the bottom of the ninth on Giordano’s sacrifice fly.
SAINTS, CLARKSON SPLIT DOUBLEHEADER
MAY 2: Steve Bodnar pitched a one-hit shutout as St. Lawrence University won game one of a Liberty League doubleheader with Clarkson 4-0 on Saturday, but the Golden Knights came back to win the nightcap 4-2.
The two teams, each in the thick of the race for a Liberty League playoff spot, will meet again at noon Sunday in Potdam. SLU, 17-16 overall and 10-12 in league play needs a sweep of the Knights to jump into the fourth and final playoff spot. Clarkson, 16-18, 10-9, can hold onto that spot with one win in Sunday’s set.
Bodnar struck out six and walked two in his game one gem, allowing only a fourth inning double to Brady Torbitt. The Saints took the lead with a run in the bottom of the third as Garrett Fitzgerald walked against Clarkson’s Rick Biitner, moved to second on Chris Donaldson’s ground out, went to third on Bryan Brennan’s fly ball and scored on Sam Kelly’s two-out double to left.
The Saints added three runs in the bottom of the sixth for insurance as Ryan Duff singled home one run with two out, Tim Harris doubled and Kirk Shimkin hit a two-run single.
Clarkson jumped out to a 2-0 first inning lead against Saint starter Sean Voss in the second game and David Goerold shut the Saints out for six innings in Clarkson’s 4-2 second game win. The Knights tacked on a run in the fifth and another in the ninth for a 4-0 lead before the Saints rallied for two in the bottom of the ninth.
Fitzgerald led off the ninth inning rally for the Saints with a single and Donaldson doubled. Brennan hit a sacrifice fly for one run and Kelly hit a run-scoring single to center before Vince Baldwin got the final two outs to preserve the win.
Robert Carman went three for four and Fitzgerald and Duff had two hits each for the Saints in game two while Garrett Russell had two hits and drove in two runs and Matt Curry had a pair of hits for the Knights.
