Bears Earn First Win of Season in Split With Lehman

BRONX, NY – The St. Joseph's College baseball team notched the first win of their third full varsity season defeating Lehman College,17-6, in the first game of a double header on Friday night. Lehman would bounce back to take the nightcap, 13-4.

Game 1 - St. Joseph's 17, Lehman 6 - Box Score

Kevin Diaz (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell) homered in the top half of the first inning to begin the scoring. Lehman scored two runs in the bottom of the second to take a 2-1 lead but that lead would be short lived as the Bears plated four runs in the next half inning behind back-to-back-to-back doubles from Diaz, Joseph Mendez (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell) and Jon Mendez (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian), all four runs coming before the Lightning could record an out.

St. Joseph's didn't take their foot off the pedal pulling away from the Lightning, tallying multiple run frames for the final five innings.

Diaz paced St. Joseph's going 4-for-5, collecting four RBI, three runs, two doubles and a home run. Joseph Swierczewski (Ozone Park, NY/Archbishop Molloy) drove in five runs and scored once on two hits, including a triple. Jon Mendez also homered, finishing with a trio of hits, RBI and runs. Joe Mendez also finished 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBI. Chris Pacifico (Brooklyn, NY/St. Edmund's) was the only other Bear to record a multi-hit game with two hits.

Donny Pagano (Staten Island, NY/St. Peter's) leveled his record to 1-1 on the mound going the distance, allowing six runs (five earned) on nine hits, while striking out nine.

Game 2 - Lehman 13, St. Joseph's 4 - Box Score

Lehman jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first inning reaching starter Kevin Hernandez (Corona, NY/Newtown) for five hits. The Bears scored two runs in the top half of the third, taking advantage of a Lehman miscue to start the frame. Hernandez settled down holding the Lightning scoreless and hitless for the next three innings before getting relieved in the fifth after giving up a leadoff triple. 

Lehman broke the game open against the Bears middle relief, scoring 10 runs in the inning, knocking seven hits, five for extra bases and aided by four walks. St. Joseph's managed solo runs in the sixth and seventh innings, but couldn't get a rally going.

Hernandez (1-3) went 4.0 innings and suffered the loss for the Bears, giving up six hits and four runs (three earned), while striking out two.  

Joe Boccia led the Bears at the plate going 3-for-4 with a double. Joe Mendez had two more hits to finish 5-for-7 on the day with four runs.

St. Joseph's improves to 1-7 and Lehman moves to 4-3 on the season. The Bears return to the diamond in the middle of an eight game road stretch on Sunday, March 20 against College of Staten Island. The doubleheader is set to begin at noon.