INDIANA, Pa. – IUP baseball received strong offensive contributions from throughout the lineup, while the pitching staff limited the damage in a total team effort, part of an 11-4 nonconference victory against Fairmont State on Tuesday at Dougherty Field.
 
Harrison Pontoli cracked three hits with four RBI, including a home run to round out the scoring for IUP (5-11). Pontolli was one of five IUP batters with multiple hits, while Sean Furlong punched out six and allowed three earned runs over four innings on the mound.
 
From there, the relief platoon of Bryson Bain, Paul Tripi, Ty Ryen and Jason Madrak combined to surrender just four hits and one run over the final five innings of action.
 
Davin Landers went 4-for-4 at the plate with two RBI as Markus Cestra, Elijah Dunn and Au'sean Owens also contributed multiple hits for IUP, which returned for its first home game in over a month. Fairmont State (2-16) held a 3-1 lead midway through the fourth before the Crimson Hawks responded with a decisive four-spot in the home half of the frame.
 
The Fighting Falcons scratched across just one run over the final five innings of the contest as IUP built an 8-4 lead before adding three more in the home half of the eighth.
 
Pontoli singled to center for a quick 1-0 lead in the first, plating Owens, who swiped second after reaching with a leadoff knock. The Falcons responded back over the next three innings for a 3-1 advantage.
 
After a one-out free pass to Andrew Sicinski, IUP smacked three consecutive singles. Cestra brought Sicinski home with a single to center before David Kessler continued the hit parade with a two-RBI single back up the middle for a 4-3 advanatge. Kessler eventually found his way home on a two-out double to left from Landers, one of four hits on the afternoon, for a 5-3 IUP lead.
 
Fairmont State trimmed its deficit to one in the fifth inning, marking the final run of the game for the Falcons on a single to left. The Hawks answered with a single run of their own in the bottom half of the fifth after Dunn singled home Torrey Roper for a 6-4 edge.
 
Four of IUP's final five runs came on extra base hits as Landers and Pontoli used sixth-inning doubles to expand the IUP advantage to 8-4. Pontoli launched his third home run of the second in the eighth for an 11-4 edge.
 
IUP tallied nine punchouts from the pitching staff as Madrak worked a clean ninth on the mound to secure the victory.
 
Up Next
IUP visits Clarion on Friday, March 24 for the start of PSAC West play with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m.
 
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