Hampton, VA - Felician dropped its season opener on Thursday afternoon, falling 16–1 to Millersville at War Memorial Stadium. Despite collecting eight hits on the day, the Golden Falcons were unable to overcome an early deficit created by a big first inning from Millersville.
Millersville struck quickly with a four-run first inning and added three more in the second to take control. Felician looked to settle in defensively after the early surge, with Brandon Lynn delivering two scoreless innings in relief and Dean Daddio adding two shutout frames later in the game to limit further damage.
Offensively, Felician totaled eight hits. Andrew Lombardi provided a spark off the bench in the seventh inning, ripping a double to right field to start the frame. Neisser Sanchez followed with an RBI single to bring Lombardi home for Felician's lone run of the afternoon. Thomas Iaquinto and Tristan Govea each added singles in the inning to keep pressure on and load the bases, but the rally was cut short.
Rocko Brzezniak, Jose David Medrano, Jeremy Espinal, and Ian Vertucci each recorded hits as well, with Vertucci adding a double in the ninth inning and advancing to third to put himself in scoring position. Felician threatened again in the final frame after Vertucci's two-base hit and a hit-by-pitch to Govea, but Millersville was able to close out the contest.
On the mound, Max Weber was charged with the loss after working 1.2 innings. Chris Laieta and Collin Kratzer followed in relief during the middle innings, while Lynn, Daddio, and Nick DiMartino combined to cover the final five innings.
Defensively, Felician turned one double play and worked through multiple high-traffic innings against a Millersville lineup that drew 20 walks. Despite the result, the Golden Falcons continued to compete throughout and generated opportunities offensively in the later innings.
Top Performers
Andrew Lombardi – 1-for-2, R, 2B
Neisser Sanchez – 1-for-1, RBI
Ian Vertucci – 1-for-1, 2B
Dean Daddio – 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO
Brandon Lynn – 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO
