POUGHKEEPSIE, NEW YORK – The Marist baseball team (4-12, 0-1 MAAC) was defeated 6-5 by Iona (5-19, 1-3 MAAC) after a late charge came up short on Saturday afternoon.

Junior center fielder Graham McIntire (Concord, New Hampshire) led the way for the Red Foxes going 3-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored. Junior leftfielder Matt Pagano (Cranston, Rhode Island) drove in two runs for the Red Foxes and was 1-for-2 with one run scored. Senior first basemen Steve Laurino (Carle Place, New York) went 2-for-5 with one run scored, while junior shortstop Joey Aiola (Suffern, New York) was 1-for-1 with one RBI.

The Red Foxes scored the game's first run in the bottom of the fourth inning. A leadoff single by McIntire to first base got the bats started for the Red Foxes. Laurino then singled to right center allowing McIntire to advance to third. Pagano laid down a sacrifice bunt allowing McIntire to score the first run of the game. In the next at bat, redshirt sophomore right fielder Zachary Racusin (Mendham, New Jersey) doubled down the left field line driving in the second run of the inning for Marist.

The Red Foxes maintained a 2-0 lead until the sixth inning when Iona scored six runs. The Gaels grabbed five hits with one walk and two batters hit by a pitch to grab their first lead of the day at 6-2. In the bottom of the eighth the Red Foxes tried to rally but came up one run short. McIntire started off the inning with a double down the right field line. Laurino grounded out to advance McIntire to third base. Pagano got his second RBI of the day when he singled up the middle driving McIntire home. Junior shortstop John Brucker (Sparta, New Jersey) and Aiola singled to drive in the final two runs for Marist.

Senior right-hander Evan Davis (Little Falls, New York) (2-3) pitched 5.2 innings and picked up the loss for Marist. Davis gave up six hits and six earned runs while striking out five batters. Senior Chris Napolitano (Wall, New Jersey) pitched a scoreless and hitless 1.1 innings, while freshman Charlie Jerla (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) pitched a scoreless 2.0 innings to close out the game. Bill Maier (1-2), who pitched 7.1 innings, picked up the win for Iona.

The Red Foxes return to action on Sunday, March 29 for the final two games of the three-game series with Iona. The doubleheader will be played at Honey Field at Bard College with the first pitch of game one scheduled for noon.