ITHACA, N.Y.--The Bombers (9-11, 4-2 Empire 8) swept their second doubleheader of the season, defeating Utica 11-2 and 11-1 Sunday afternoon. Senior Tom Fishback (Penfield/Webster) and sophomore Tucker Healy (Needham/Needham, Mass.) both picked up wins in the sweep. Ithaca's top three hitters combined to go 12-for-19 over the two games.
Fishback drew the game one start and allowed just two earned runs over six innings, he allowed four hits and two walks and struck out five Pioneers. Fishback's win was his team-leading fourth of the season. Healy—making his second career start—also threw six innings. He struck out a career-high 10 batters, including nine of the first 15 he faced. Healy is now 2-0 on the season with a 1.23 earned run average through 22 innings pitched.
In the opener, the Bombers got all the offense they need in the first innings. Senior #T.J. Abone# (Rome Free Academy/Rome), junior David Ahonen (Victor/Farmington) and freshman Sean Weber (Columbia/East Schodack) all had run scoring singles in the game, with junior Trevor Wolf (Lansing/Freeville) driving in a run on a sacrifice fly.
Ithaca scored in every inning of the first game, tallying single runs in the second, fifth and sixth innings and two in each of the third and fourth innings.
Abone went 3-for-4 with three runs batted in the game. He is hitting .318 on the season with a team-best 19 RBI. Top two hitters Mike Rosenbaum (Fayetteville-Malinus/Fayetteville) and Rob Zappia (Greece Athena/Rochester) both picked up two hits in the first game, as did Weber and classmate Matt Keller (Pelham/Pelham). Ahonen scored three runs in the game.
The Bombers got off to a similarly strong start in game two, going up 6-0 after three innings. Ahonen's first inning double plated Rosenbaum and Zappia, with Weber scoring Abone with a flyout to center, one of three Bomber sacrifice flies in the game. Zappia and Abone had back-to-back sacrifice flies in the second to put Ithaca up by five.
Keller added another run on a single in the third that brought Wolf home.
Ithaca blew open a 6-1 game with a five-run sixth inning. Rosenbaum led off the inning with a single, followed by a Zappia walk. An Abone single dorve in Rosenbaum, and Ahonen was hit by a pitch to lead the bases. Wolf was also hit by a pitch to drive in a run, and Weber followed with a bases loaded walk to put Ithaca up 9-1. With two outs, freshman Cory Caswell drove in two runners with a pinch-hit single.
Over the final three games of the weekend series between the two teams—all won by Ithaca—the Bombers hit .440 with 31 runs. Abone (.667) and Ahonen (.556) both collected hits in more than half of their at-bats.
On the mound, Ithaca allowed just four earned runs over the combined 28 innings of the four games. Ithaca pitchers struck out 24 Pioneers against nine walks.
The Bombers next play Tuesday, when they host Cazenovia in a non-conference game.
Game one box score
Game two box score
