Bronx, N.Y. - It's only fitting that the NFL draft was the same night as the Lehman baseball team's game with Western Connecticut, because the teams combined for 32 runs and 36 hits as the Colonials came out on top, 20-12.  The Lightning fell to 14-19 with the loss.

Western Connecticut led 3-0 after half an inning, but Lehman pulled to 3-2 with a pair in the bottom of the first.  Carlo Francisco and David Rodriguez each had RBI singles in the inning.  The Colonials scored two more and led 5-2 heading into the bottom of the third.  Rodriguez led off with a walk.  Nataneal Toribio followed with a double and both men scored on a 2-RBI single from Euriel Murray.  Lehman was within 5-4.

Two more runs in the fourth for Western Connecticut pushed their lead to 7-4.  The Lightning bats would wake up in the bottom of the fourth, to the tune of six runs.  Mark Vargas was hit by a pitch.  Julius Puryear singled.  Francisco singled home Vargas and the score was 7-5.  Rodriguez doubled in Puryear and Lehman was within a run.  After Toribio and Murray reached to load the bases, Rob Kiernan connected on a grand slam homerun over the wall in left center.  The score was 10-7, Lightning.  The Colonials took the lead for good a couple of innings later, but Lehman scored twice more.  In the seventh, Puryear doubled and scored on a Toribio base hit.    The duo repeated that sequence in the ninth, but the Colonials won 20-12.

In the game, Lehman finished with 18 hits and 8 errors, both season highs.  Puryear was 4-4 with four runs scored and Toribio went 4-6.  Jose Moronta was tagged with the loss, but Rich Frommelt pitched a scoreless inning of relief.

The Lehman College baseball team returns to action on Saturday, April 28, when they host CSI in a doubleheader starting at noon.