Box Score
NIAGARA, N.Y. - The D'Youville baseball team returned to Western New York for the first time this season, opening up East Coast Conference play with a 5-2 defeat to Queens (N.Y.) at Niagara University Friday afternoon. The loss drops the Saints to 6-7 on the season and 0-1 in league play.
The Saints were held scoreless in their first six trips to the plate until sophomore John Rogowski, Jr. broke through in the bottom of the seventh inning with a two-run home run to put the Saints on the board.
Rogowski, Jr. took advantage of the wind blowing out to left field for his second home run of the season. The first was a grand slam in the 15-14 win over Malone on March 11. Friday's two-run blast drove in freshman Chris Stefan who reached on a single to center field right before Rogowski stepped up to the plate.
Queens (6-8, 1-0 ECC) scored a pair of runs in the second inning before tallying one run in each of the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings to pick up a 5-0 cushion.
Freshman Chris AuClair got the starting nod on the mound and kept the Saints in the game … AuClair fanned five batters while surrendering three earned runs on eight hits … Sophomore Samuel Worthen (2.2 innings) pitched in relief of AuClair and kept the Knight's bats quiet in his stint on the mound … Worthen struck out one and gave up no runs on two hits.
Rogowski's home run was about all of the offense the Saints could generate in Friday's ECC opening setback … Stefan (1-for-2), freshman Dillon Crook (1-for-3), and sophomore Ethan Hammond (1-for-4) also hit safely for the Saints.
The Saints will have a chance to take this weekend's opening conference series in a doubleheader against Queens back at Niagara University tomorrow afternoon. Game times are slated for 12 and 3 p.m.
