KINGS POINT, N.Y. (May 4, 2025) -Â USMMA Baseball swept their doubleheader against the SUNY Maritime Privateers, winning game one 5-1, before winning game two with a furious comeback, 9-7, to clinch the top seed and home field advantage in the upcoming Skyline tournament. Kings Point finished the regular season 26-13 (16-4 Skyline), while Maritime went 22-17 (13-7 Skyline).
Game Links
Senior Danny Heck (Massillon, Ohio) had four hits over the afternoon, including a key two-run home run in game two to help kick off the comeback bid, recording four total RBIs on the day. Senior Jack Millen (Shelby, N.C.) had three hits and an RBI, and Christian Gamez (Kent Island, Md.) had two RBIs in game two, including the go-ahead blow in the eighth inning.Â
On the pitching staff, junior Ryan Felton (Granbury, Texas) twirled a gem in game one, with seven innings of one-run ball in a complete game effort. In game two, junior Eddie Lippert (Deer Park, N.Y.) spun 3.2 crucial innings of relief, fanning five Privateers without allowing a hit or a run.
Game 1 saw USMMA open the scoring with a bang, thanks to freshman Luke Kruer (Sellersburg, Ind.) clubbing his eighth home run of the season. It was a two-run shot over the left field wall to put Kings Point in front 2-0.
Jack Millen added another run in the fifth inning, when he lined a ball into the alley in left-center. It caromed around between the two outfielders, as Millen tore around the bases for an inside-the-park home run to make it 3-0 USMMA. Later in the frame, senior Garrett Clapsaddle (Murphy, N.C.) made it 4-0 on an RBI groundout, and then a Maritime error allowed a fifth run to come home.
The Privateers did tag Felton for a run in the top of the seventh, but it was not enough as Merchant Marine took game one by a final score of 5-1. Felton earned his fifth win (5-4), while Frank Santeramo was saddled with the loss (1-3).
USMMA knew they needed a win in game two as well to secure the #1 seed for the conference tournament, but it was SUNY Maritime who came out stronger in the second game.Â
Michael Frazetta put the Privateers up 1-0 with a solo homer in the top of the first, then picked up another RBI in the third as part of a four-run inning to make it 5-0 Maritime. They pushed that lead out to six runs in the top of the seventh inning, before Danny Heck's two-run bomb in the bottom of the frame got Merchant Marine on the board, but with work to do.
The Privateers got one of those runs back right away in the eighth and needed just six outs to spoil USMMA's hopes of home field advantage in the postseason.
KP trailed by five going to the home half of the eighth inning, but kickstarted the comeback bid with back-to-back singles to put men on the corners with no one out. Sophomore Landon Troutt (Fairfield, Calif) plated one run with an RBI single to left field, and sophomore Tommy Chiapetti (Buckeye, Ariz.) tacked on another with a sharp single back up the middle to make it 7-4.
A balk moved the runners up to second and third, and Danny Heck took advantage with a sacrifice fly to plate Troutt and cut the deficit to 7-5. Luke Kruer then got hit by a pitch, and Charles Cahalan (Overland Park, Kan.) worked a walk to load the bases. Immediately following the walk, Maritime committed another balk, which forced in a run and shrunk the margin to just 7-6. With both the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position now for Gamez, he came through with a two-run single back up the middle, giving Merchant Marine their first lead of the ballgame at 8-7. Jack Millen also added an insurance run, giving the Mariners a 9-7 lead going to the ninth.Â
Suddenly, in a save situation, junior Caden Pierce (Marietta, Ga.) was called upon to seal the deal. The all-time program leader in saves added another one to his ledger without much drama. He allowed a single, but induced the game-ending double play to secure a 9-7 Mariner victory. He earned his seventh save of the year, Kruer registered his first collegiate win (1-0), and Jared Kay took the loss (0-1).Â
USMMA is the #1 seed in the upcoming Skyline Conference Tournament, with championship weekend set to be played at Bartoszek Field beginning on Friday, May 9th. Stay tuned to usmmasports.com for more information regarding opponents and start times for that weekend.
Sign Up To Receive Baseball News Directly To Your E-Mail
If you would like to receive the latest news for the USMMA baseball team (or any other team at the Academy), including all press releases, fill out this form.
Â
Follow USMMA Athletics On Social Media!
Be sure to follow USMMA Athletics on social media to get up-to-the-minute updates on your favorite teams! Start following today on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube!
