NEW HAVEN, Connecticut - Nick Serce hit a ninth-inning home run, but the American International College baseball team could not hold on and fell 9-8 in 10 innings to Southern Connecticut State in a Northeast-10 Conference contest, and also dropped a 9-0 seven-inning nonconference match with the Owls on Saturday, April 19.

AIC is now 13-19 overall and 7-8 in the NE10.

Leandro Guevara started the first game off with a bang, launching a home run to left in the second at-bat of the game. The Owls countered with an RBI groundout in the first, and then roared to a 5-1 lead in the third as Jack Drewry launched a three-run shot, followed by a solo Patrick Dillon home run.

Guevara drove in another run in the fifth, and then in the sixth AIC tied the game as Kiernan Caffrey smacked a two-run shot to right and Cole Patterson drove in Brendan Edvardsen with a base hit.

The Owls were able to retake the lead on a sacrifice fly in the eighth, setting up a dramatic ninth. Yeudy Ramirez reached and then stole second, and with two outs the Owls elected to intentionally walk Guevara. The play backfired, as Serce crushed a 1-1 pitch over the left-field fence to give AIC an 8-6 lead.

The home team quickly rebounded, as Brennan Staubley hit a two-run home run to tie the game. The Owls packed the bases but were not able to score the winning run. However, in the tenth, Drewry was able to hit an RBI single, winning the contest and the NE10 series for the Owls.

Southern Connecticut took control of game two quickly with a five-run second, and added two in the fifth and sixth for the 9-0 final.

AIC continues its 11-game road swing with a NE10 duo at Assumption University on Tuesday, April 22 beginning at noon.