CONTACT: Steve Mullen (518) 629-8063
FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Tuesday, May 4, 2004
Top-seeded Hudson Valley Community College squeezed past No. 8 Broome Community College, 4-3, in the opening round of the NJCAA Region III Division III Baseball Tournament earlier today at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium in Troy.
The Vikings improve their record to 41-8 and will play fourth-seeded Columbia-Greene Community College, a 9-1 winner over Schenectady County Community College today, in the semifinals of a four-team double-elimination tournament at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 7 at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium. The other semifinal game will match No. 2 Erie Community College and No. 6 Jamestown Community College at 3 p.m. on Friday.
Broome tied the game 3-3 in the top of the sixth inning before sophomore Elvis Climes (Middletown/Middletown High School) singled home sophomore Jonathan Callahan (Schenectady/Schenectady High School) to give the Vikings a 4-3 lead. Callahan had reached base on a dropped fly ball.
Sophomore pitcher Jeremy Gulich (Horseheads/Horseheads High School), who entered the game in the sixth inning, preserved the win by only allowing one hit over the final three innings. He struck out two and walked none.
Sophomore Rashad Barksdale (Hudson/Hudson High School) gave Hudson Valley a 1-0 lead in the second inning with his fourth home run of the season.
Climes put the Vikings up 2-0 an inning later when after hitting a single to lead off the inning, he stole second, third and home. He now has 40 stolen bases on the season.
Climes finished the day with two hits, an RBI and three stolen bases. Sophomores Kody Caulfield (Schenectady/Schenectady High School) and Bill Kelts (Waterford/Christian Brothers Academy) also had two hits for the Vikings.
Broome 000 111 000 - 3 10 3
Hudson Valley 011 101 00x - 4 10 2
Broome: Adam Bennett, Joe Lojpersberger (8) and Matt Ferraro
Hudson Valley: Nate Jones, Jeremy Gulich (6) and Craig Mastroianni