Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Chris Zbin (Colchester, Conn.) threw a career-high 15 strikeouts on Saturday as the Southern Connecticut State University baseball team split its pair of home games against Mercy College in it's home opener. The Owls took the first game 3-2 behind Zbin's impressive performance but fell short in the following game, 3-2. Michael Cleary (West Boylston, Mass.) led the squad offensively with three hits on the day including a triple and a double. Southern is now 3-2 overall and Mercy is 1-2.

Zbin struck out the first six batters he faced but the Mavericks would jump on the board first. In the top of the third, Matt Walsh drove in two unearned runs on a single to center field as Mercy claimed a 2-0 lead. Southern would retaliate in the bottom half of the inning however, as Ryan Geffert (Plymouth, Pa.) flied out to left field, driving in Cleary to cut the deficit to one.

In the bottom of the sixth, Geffert would drive in another run with a triple to center field. Bryan Dorsey (Cheshire, Conn.) scored on the play as the Owls tied the ballgame, 2-2. In the next inning, Southern would add the winning run as Kyle Rosadino (Berwyn, Pa.) walked with the bases loaded.

Zbin threw seven innings, allowing two unearned runs on only two hits, walked three batters and struck out 15. Ryan Yerina (Trumbull, Conn.) appeared in a relief effort, throwing two scoreless innings to record the save. Cleary, Geffert and Eric Schlitter (Guilford, Conn.) connected on the only hits in the game for the Owls. Cleary went 2-for-5 and Geffert drove in two runs.

In the second game of the day, Southern would take a quick 1-0 lead after the first inning. Cleary led off with a double to left and would advance to third on a single by Rosadino. With a runner on first and third, Char Dehart balked to advance runners and give Southern the lead.

The next two innings went scoreless until the bottom of the fourth. With the bases loaded, Ken Mundy singled to center field to drive in two runs for Mercy as they took their first lead of the game.

Southern would tie the game in the seventh but the Mavericks would come right back in the top of the eighth to take a 3-2 lead and claim the win.

Steve Simon (Middlefield, Conn.) started and went four innings, allowing two unearned runs on two hits. Cleary added another hit and has now hit safely in each of the team's first five games. #A.J. Rouleau# (Westborough, Mass.) went 1-for-2 with a run scored and two walks.

Southern heads to Boca Raton, Fla. next week for an 11 game road trip. There first game is a doubleheader scheduled for 9 a.m. against C.W. Post.