ITHACA, N.Y.—The Ithaca College Bombers (13-8, 5-3 Empire 8) scored two runs in the first, another in the second and three more in the third to take a commanding 6-0 lead over the Houghton Highlanders (10-14, 2-8 Empire 8) and never looked back.
 
The Highlanders trailed by seven after five innings when they finally put two on the scoreboard in the sixth.  David Wessells hit a two-out, two RBI single through the right side, scoring Ethan Duryea and Jeremy Newswanger.
 
After the Bombers redeemed a run in the bottom half of the inning, Houghton plated two more in the seventh on a Garret Kirkpatrick single and a ground out by Bryan Hodge, trimming the Ithaca lead to 8-4.
 
The Highlanders had two runners on base with only one out, but failed to cut the lead further.
 
Ithaca then opened up the gates in the bottom of the seventh, scoring four more runs and pushing their lead to eight.
 
While the Highlanders battled over the next two innings, scoring two more runs in the ninth, the deficit proved insurmountable. 
 
Wessells, Zamites and Nicholas Melchiore all had two hits apiece for the Highlanders.
 
Coach's Corner:
"Ithaca simply outplayed us today.  They took an early lead and that allowed them to pressure us in a lot of different ways.  It also meant we had to move station-to-station because outs became precious. 
 
"Ithaca is an incredibly well-coached team.  They've been a top-tier program for a long time and it's evident in the way they play.  They do everything the right way.
 
"We're young and it's good for us to see this brand of baseball.  We had our opportunities; we just need to do a better job of capitalizing and executing." –Coach Brian Reitnour
 
Next Time Out:
The Highlanders next travel to Alfred on Friday to take on the Alfred State Pioneers at 4:00 p.m.