FROSTPROOF, Fla. – Junior Matt Sardini's first career home run put the Gators ahead early, as the Allegheny pitching staff silenced the bats of Benedictine University, as the Gators were able to hang on for a 3-2 win over the Eagles on Thursday afternoon at the Frostproof Athletic Complex.

Sardini's blast in the second inning cleared the left field fence, giving the Blue and Gold the early lead in their second consecutive win.  Junior Joe Killian batted 3-for-4 in the game, logging a team-high in hits, while senior Zach Gray tacked on a hit and a run scored, forcing a pair of walks.  Sophomore Andrew Dawson scored a run for the Gators, picking up a critical run for the Gators in the second inning.

Sophomore Corey Keenan picked up his first win of the season, pitching 6.2 innings and only allowing four hits while striking out four batters.  Senior Paul Vojtek came up big for the Gators, pitching the eighth and ninth innings to earn his first save of the year.  Vojtek did not allow a hit over two innings, striking out a pair of batters while not allowing any walks.

The win gives the Gators a 4-3 record and their second consecutive win after a 6-1 win over Oswego State on March 18th.  Thursday's win is also the third time this season that the Gators have held an opponent to two or fewer runs, with all three occurrences resulting in wins.

Benedictine picked up a hit in the top of the first, but Keenan forced a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.  After a scoreless Gators first inning, the Eagles put a runner into scoring position in the top of the second, but the Gators were able to escape once again, as Keenan worked out of a one-out situation with a runner at second to keep the game scoreless.

With two outs in the bottom of the second, Sardini took a high fastball with a 1-1 count and crushed it over the left center field fence, depositing the ball into the orange groves in the outfield for his first career home run to put the Gators ahead.  Dawson was walked in the subsequent at bat, advancing to third on back-to-back wild pitches.  DiMaggio walked, then caught Benedictine in a rundown that allowed Dawson to score and put the Gators up, 2-1.

Keenan retired the Eagles in order in the third inning, as Allegheny was able to plate another run in the bottom of the frame.  Killian singled through the left side after Gray earned a one-out walk, scoring after a wild pitch.  Benedictine scored its first run on a sacrifice fly in the fourth, cutting the Gator lead to 3-1.

After a scoreless fifth, Keenan returned to the mound for the sixth.  After a walk and a double put runners at the corners with no out, Keenan retired the next three batters to end the inning unscathed.  However, the Eagles would plate another run in the seventh, closing the deficit to one run.  Freshman Jameson Murray entered in relief of Keenan with the tying run on second base, retiring the side to send the Gators into the bottom of the seventh with the lead.

Allegheny was unable to plate a run in the seventh, eighth or ninth inning, leaving the game in the hands of the pitching staff.  Vojtek entered the game in the eighth, forcing three fly outs to push the Eagles to their final three outs. 

The Eagles put a runner aboard to lead off the ninth inning, but Vojtek struck out the following batter to bring Benedictine down to its final two outs.  With an 0-1 count on the third batter of the inning and a pinch runner at second, Adam Bronson fired a strike to Gray to catch the potential tying run stealing and bring the Gators one strike away from the win.  That strike came on the following at bat, giving the Gators the win as Vojtek earned his first save of his senior season.

Allegheny will close the 2015 spring training trip on Friday with a doubleheader against New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) member Bowdoin at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 20th.