PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA – The Rider University baseball team was topped in the opening game of a three-game series at Villanova on Friday. The Broncs fall to 11-6 on the season, while the Wildcats improve to 2-14.
 
In the bottom of the first, Villanova got on the board with back-to-back hits to lead off the game.
 
The Broncs got the run back in the top of the second when Brendan O'Donnell (Malvern, PA/Great Valley) turned on a fastball and sent it well over the fence in left center.
 
In the sixth, John Volpe (Sea Girt, NJ/Wall) led off the inning with a single through the right side. After advancing to second on a groundout and stealing third, Volpe came in to score when Socrates Bardatsos (Ridgefield, NJ/St. Joseph's Regional) reached on an error. Brian Skettini (Midland Park, NJ/Ridgewood) drove in Bardatsos with a single to put Rider on top 3-1.
 
The lead would be short lived as the Wildcats responded with a two-run home run in the bottom half of the inning.
 
Scott Shaw (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill West) started the eighth by drawing a walk. Bardatsos followed with a single that deflected off the pitcher and by the center fielder. Skettini then drew a walk to load the bases with no outs. Shaw came in to score on a fielder's choice, giving Rider the lead at 4-3. With two outs and runners on second and third, Jack Winsett (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern Regional) delivered a two-run single, giving the Broncs a pair of key insurance runs.
 
In the eighth, the Wildcats opened the inning with a drive to right. The ball stopped under the padding on the fence in right field, causing O'Donnell to throw up his hands for a ground-rule double, but the umpires did not grant the call, allowing the Villanova runner to round the bases making it 6-4.
 
In the ninth, the Broncs had the Wildcats down to their final strike twice, but a two-out hit scored a pair to tie the game, and Villanova scored one in the tenth to earn the win.
 
Quotes & Notes
"We got the three-run lead, and the big hit by Winsett, and when have lead entering the ninth, we've been able to close it out, but we just didn't get it done today."
 
"We were within one strike of getting out of the game twice, and just didn't make the pitches to make it happen. It's going to happen when you play a lot of gaes, and you learn from it and bounce back tomorrow." – Head Coach Dr. Barry Davis
 
- Dylan Heine (Haddonfield, NJ/Haddonfield) got the start, going 5+ innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. He struck out six.
- Christian Aiello (Hewitt, NJ/West Milford) was the first out of the pen, allowing one run on one hit in two innings of work. He struck out a pair.
- Alec Sachais (Egg Harbor Twp., NJ/Holy Spirit) retired all three batters he faced.
- Danny Kirwin (Lansdale, PA/North Penn) took the loss, allowing three runs, two earned on three hits. He struck out two.
- Skettini has reached safely in all 17 games this season.
- Matt Shepherd hit a pinch-hit double in his Rider debut.
 
Broncs by the Numbers
- Seven different Broncs recorded hits in the game, led by two from Bardatsos.
- Five Broncs scored, with Bardatsos crossing the plate twice.
- O'Donnell's home run is his fifth of the season, and fourth in the last five games.
 
Up Next
The Broncs return to action Saturday when the series at Villanova continues. First pitch is tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m., but is likely to change to account for the potential of poor weather in the forecast for Sunday.