LAKE MYRTLE, Florida – Junior Gabe Gifford (Bradley, Maine/Old Town) threw six shutout innings with 11 strikeouts while allowing just one hit to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies' baseball team to 7-0 seven-inning win over the Ramapo College Roadrunners on Tuesday in the first game of a double header at the RussMatt Invitational in Florida. The win was Gifford's first with the Huskies. Ramapo took game two by a score of 4-1 to split the double header.
 
The Huskies had five hits in game one with sophomore Caleb Vacchiano (Cornish, Maine/Sacopee Valley) recording two of the knocks. Vacchiano finished the game 2-for-3 with a pair of singles and three runs batted in.
 
Ramapo win in game two was thanks in part to a two-run single by Zach Novakowsk in the third inning. The Huskies got a run back in the top of the sixth when freshman Kaiden Morin (Brewer, Maine) drew a bases loaded walk. Morin finished the game 1-for-2 with an RBI.
 
Michael Zalinkanskas earned the win for Ramapo in game two after going 5.2 innings with 10 strikeouts and allowing one run on two hits. Freshman Hayden Strout (Charleston, Maine/Foxcroft Academy) had a strong start for the Huskies but took the loss despite only allowing a pair of unearned runs in 5.2 innings of work.
 
Records:                                                                                        
GM 1 – Southern Maine 7, Ramapo 0 (7 inn)
Ramapo (6-3)                           000 000 0      0-2-3
Southern Maine (6-1)                203 002 x    7-5-2
 
GM 2 – Ramapo 4, Southern Maine 1 (7 inn.)
Southern Maine (6-2)               000 001 0     1-2-2
Ramapo (7-3)                           002 002 x     4-8-1
 
Pitching Records:
GM 1
WP: SM, Gabe Gifford (1-0), 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 11 Ks
LP:  RC, John Hacker (1-1), 5.0 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 5 Ks
 
GM 2
WP:  RC, Michael Zalinkanskas (3-0), 5.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 7 BB, 10 Ks
LP:  SM, Hayden Strout (1-1), 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
SV: RC, Carlo Lalomia Jr. (2), 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 K
 
 
 
Game One Recap:

• Gifford struck out two batters in the top of the first after working around a leadoff walk and a hit batter. Vacchiano gave the Huskies a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning with an RBI single that scored senior Kyle Douin (Augusta, Maine/Cony). The Huskies scored a second run when sophomore Drew Scialdone (Amesbury, Mass.) was caught in a rundown between first and second on a stolen base attempt which allowed junior Peter Keblinsky (Ellsworth, Maine) to score.
• Gifford struck out four more batters over the next two innings with three of the hitters striking out looking. In the bottom of the third, Douin singled then swiped second before Keblinsky drew a walk. The duo then executed a double steal to put two runners in scoring position for Vacchiano. Vacchiano singled up the middle to score both runners and took second on the throw to the plate. He scored himself on a single to right field by Scialdone.
• A walk, an error and another walk loaded the bases for Ramapo with two outs in the top of the fourth. However, Gifford was able to escape the jam by getting a fly out to left field.
• Ramapo got their first hit of the game with a single up the middle by Julian Schultz with one out in top of the fifth. Gifford then retired the next two batters on a lineout to left field and a strikeout.
• Gifford struck out the side in the top of the six to bring his total to 11. The Huskies benefited from a pair of Ramapo errors in the bottom of the inning to extend the lead to 7-0.
• Keblinsky took over on the mound in the top of the seventh and gave up an infield single to James Zwolinsk before striking out the next two batters.  A wild pitch and a fielding error put runners on the corners before a ground out to second ended the game.

 
Game Two Recap:

• The Huskies drew three walks in the top of the first inning, but Zalinkanskas worked out of trouble with back-to-back strikeouts. Julian Caruso led off the bottom half of the inning and stole second before being left stranded.
• Ramapo broke through for two runs in the fourth inning. Zach Barbash reached after being hit by a pitch then advanced to second on a failed pick off. Braden Schappert then reached on an error. Strout retired the lead runner at third on a sacrifice bunt attempt for the first out of the inning. The Huskies got another out on the basepaths as Baschnagel cut down Schappert at the plate following a single by Schultz. However, the Roadrunners ultimately took a 2-0 lead on a two-run single by Novakowsk before the Huskies got out of the inning.
• Morin singled to open the fifth for the first Husky hit of the game and got into scoring position on a failed pickoff attempt before the next two hitters struck out.
• A walk by Scialdone, a single by freshman Josh Polchies (Gorham, Maine/Falmouth) and another walk by senior Chris Quigley (Halifax, Mass./Silver Lake Regional) loaded the bases with two outs for the Huskies. Morin then drew another walk following a Ramapo pitching change to put the Huskies on the board before a fly out ended the inning.
• Sophomore Jackson Emery (Vernon, Vermont/Brattleboro Union) replaced Strout on the mound in the sixth and gave up two runs on three hits while striking out two batters.
• Carlo Lalomia Jr., who entered the game in the sixth, struck out the side in the top of the seventh for the save.

 
Up Next:
Southern Maine is wrapping up yesterday's halted game with No. 6 Salve Regina University this evening. The Seahawks led 19-10 in the top of the sixth inning when play was suspended. The team will then return to New England for their first Little East Conference action of the season with a doubleheader at UMass Dartmouth on Saturday, March 21. Game one is scheduled for 12:00 pm.