Box Score (Siena 8, Cornell 3)
Box Score (Cornell 9, Siena 0)

LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. -- The Cornell baseball team closed out its 12-game road trip on Tuesday by picking up a split at Siena in Loudonville, N.Y. Cornell fell in the opener, 8-3, but rebounded well in game two to claim a 9-0 victory over the Saints.

Chris Cruz had a strong day for the Big Red both at the plate and on the mound, as the freshman got the start in the opener and worked four innings, allowing a pair of runs on three hits with a pair of strikeouts. In game two, he went 1-for-1 with a two-run home run and a pair of walks. Brian Billigen also was solid at the plate, going 4-for-7 with a pair of runs scored and three more driven in. Brenton Peters was 2-for-2 at the plate with a double and a triple to go along with a walk.

Cruz was in line for the win in the opener as Cornell (6-26) had a 3-2 lead after five innings. After Siena (14-23) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, the Big Red tied the score with a pair of singles and a sacrifice bunt, coupled with a Siena error, as the Big Red knotted the game at one. Siena regained the lead with a run in the bottom of the second off of Cruz, but Cornell took its first lead of the game in the fifth.

Frank Hager hit a one-out single and Ben Swinford reached on an error to put a pair of runners on base. Brandon Lee then singled home Hager, and Swinford scored when he and Lee executed a double steal, giving Cornell the 3-2 lead.

That lead would be short-lived, however, as the Saints scored six times in the bottom of the inning, including four runs credited against reliever Houston Hawley. Rick Marks came on in relief and allowed two runs in two innings, striking out a pair. Cornell had a pair of baserunners in the final two innings, but could not mount the comeback as the Saints took game one.

Game two saw Cornell get a strong performance on the mound from Dan Lea, as he allowed just two hits while striking out seven in five innings as the game was called due to darkness. The Saints advanced a runner as far as third base just once in the contest as Lea was in control throughout.

The Big Red offense got going in the third, scoring six times in the third. Billigen was hit by a pitch to open the inning, and Tom D'Alessandro singled to right to put a pair on. A wild pitch moved both runners up, and Mickey Brodsky drove them both home with a single up the middle. Brodsky would then get thrown out stealing second, but that did not take the steam out of the Big Red rally. Swinford hit a single to center with two out, and Cruz followed with a home run to right to make the score 4-0. Ryan Plantier walked and scored on a triple by Peters, who came home when Billigen doubled, making the score 6-0 in favor of the Big Red.

Cornell tacked on three more runs in the fifth, again doing the damage with two out. Peters doubled to right and moved up when Mike Lopez singled to third base. A single up the middle scored Peters, while a D'Alessandro single scored Lopez, and Billigen scored on an error as the Big Red stretched the lead to 9-0, where it would remain when the game was called due to darkness.

The Big Red returns to Hoy Field this weekend for a four-game set against Gehrig Division rival Penn. First pitch of a doubleheader on both Saturday and Sunday is scheduled for noon.