JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Quinnipiac defeated Saint Peter's 3-1 to take the rubber game of a three-game series in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) baseball action on Monday.
James Spadaccini (Butler, N.J./Butler) paced the Peacocks (1-11, 1-2 MAAC) with a hit and a run scored in the loss.
Scott Donaghue posted two hits and two RBIs for the Bobcats (4-13, 2-1 MAAC) while Vincent Guglietti added two hits and two runs scored in the winning effort.
Quinnipiac took the lead in the fifth inning and held on for the 3-1 victory to take two of three against Saint Peter's in the first league series of the season.
A pair of doubles gave the Bobcats a 2-0 lead in the fifth inning. John Bodenhamer doubled to right field to score Guglietti and then Donaghue plated Bodenhamer with a double to left field.
The Peacocks answered with a run in the bottom of the fifth to trim the margin to 2-1.
Spadaccini led off the frame with a double to right center before
Sean Henry (Brick, N.J./Brick Township) singled up the middle to put runners at the corners with no outs.
Jon Kristoffersen (Jefferson, N.J./Jefferson Township) hit a ground ball to the first basemen, who attempted to get Spadaccini at the plate, but his throw was wide to the right and all runners were safe. After a sacrifice bunt moved the runners to second and third, a line out to second and a ground out to second ended the threat and Quinnipiac maintained the lead at 2-1.
Donaghue increased the lead to 3-1 with an RBI single in the seventh.
Saint Peter's had five base runners the rest of the afternoon after the fifth inning, but only had two runners in scoring position in the final four innings.
In the sixth,
Mike Ionta (Westfield, N.J./Westfield( was hit with a pitch with one out and Spadaccini walked to put runners on first and second with two outs before a fly out ended the threat.
Nick Ciocco (Cherry Hill, N.J./Cherry Hill) walked in the seventh with one out and stole second and moved to third on a fly out, but was stranded on third after groundout ended the frame.
John Leiter (Toms River, N.J./Toms River South) took the loss, but pitched well. The junior allowed two runs on five hits with four strikeouts in six innings of work.
The Peacocks return to action on Tuesday at St. John's. Game time is 3:30 p.m.
