La Plume, PA: The SUNY Cobleskill baseball team used a three-run homer from junior shortstop Jeffrey Gutierrez (Bronx, NY/Cardinal Hayes) to grab an early lead on Wednesday evening, but Keystone College rallied and pulled away late to hand the Tigers a 9-3 non-conference loss at Christy Mathewson Field.

Gutierrez finished 1-for-4 at the plate, delivering his first home run of the season in the second inning to drive in all three Cobleskill runs. David Flora (Windsor, NY), Korin Laurilla (East Greenbush, NY/Columbia), and Cole Platt (Oneonta, NY) each turned in 2-for-4 performances, with Platt smacking a double in the first inning. Zach Papanikolatos (Patchoque, NY/Patchoque-Medford) and Ryan Lansing (Cooperstown, NY) each recorded a hit as the Tigers totaled nine on the day.

Dylan Schwam (Cooper City, FL/South Plantation) got the starting nod, going 1.0 inning and allowing two earned runs on two hits and two walks. Tyler Sienko (Binghamton, NY/Windsor) was tagged with the loss (2-2), tossing 2.0 innings while giving up two runs—one earned—on one hit with two strikeouts. In all, seven Cobleskill pitchers saw action, including clean frames from Reis Brammer (Cohoes, NY/CBA Albany) and Connor Mulligan (Cheshire, NY), who combined to allow just one hit over two innings of work.

Keystone wasted no time getting on the board, pushing across two runs in the first on a sac fly and an RBI single. Cobleskill responded in the top of the second as Gutierrez turned on a pitch and deposited it over the left field wall for a three-run shot, scoring Thomas Reis (Deposit, NY) and Papanikolatos to give the Tigers a 3-2 edge.

The lead didn't last long. The Giants tied it up with a solo homer in the third, then capitalized on a failed pickoff attempt to take a 4-3 lead. After two scoreless innings by the Tigers' defense, Keystone pulled away with one run in the sixth and a three-run burst in the seventh, capped by a two-run double from catcher Cooper Fesh. They tacked on one more in the eighth to seal the final 9-3 margin.

Up Next:
The Tigers return to Fighting Tiger Park this weekend for a North Atlantic Conference series against Lesley University. Game one is set for Saturday at 1:00 p.m.