Baseball Closes Out Trip to Florida with Two Losses Against Alma

AUBURNDALE, Fla. – The St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) baseball team wrapped up the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational on a down note dropping a doubleheader to Alma, 8-4 in game one and 4-0 in game two, Saturday afternoon at Lake Myrtle Park.

Nicholas LoPrinzi (Howard Beach, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) led the Bears (1-4) with three hits over the doubleheader, all in the first game, along with a run scored and a run driven in. Senior Thomas McKenna (Bellerose, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) drilled three hits, including two of the team's three in game two. Michael Camerada (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell)), Chris Cutrone (Levittown, N.Y./Island Trees), and Bobby Perretti (Howard Beach, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) each crossed the plate in a losing effort.

Adam Thoryk paced the Scots (2-0) with four hits and five RBI in two games. Juan Dominguez knocked in three runs. Alma got strong pitching from both Colin Nash and Jean Soucy. Nash fanned six batters in a complete-game outing, allowing just one earned run. Soucy secured a complete-game three-hit shutout in game two, walking just one batter and striking out four.

The Bears got out to a great start to the first game of the twinbill, plating two runs in the top of the first on Camerada scoring on a passed ball after a leadoff triple, then LoPrinzi lining a run-scoring single. A wild pitch allowed Perretti to cross the plate in the top of the third to extend their advantage to 3-0.  Their lead would be padded to four after LoPrinzi scored on another wild pitch.

In the bottom of the fourth, Alma would rally with four runs in the frame. Thoryk drove in a pair with a single. Two runs would also score on two bases-loaded walks. They would drive in two more in the bottom of the fifth on a Yoan De La Rosa RBI single and a Thoryk sacrifice fly. The team tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth to seal the win.

Game two saw the Scots grab two runs in the top of the second after loading the bases with no one out, as Thoryk continued his torrid day with a two-run single. A fielder's choice in the fifth and a RBI double added some insurance to close out the win. St. Joseph's threatened in both the fifth and sixth with a runner 90 feet away from scoring in each inning, but Soucy would escape both frames unscathed to go the distance.

The Bears return home and will face Southern Vermont on Saturday, March 7th at Narrows Field in a doubleheader. First pitch is set at 12:00 p.m. Live stats will be available at SJCBears.com.