York, Pa. (May 20, 2017) – Second-seeded Shenandoah University (39-9) scored five runs in the top of the first inning and held on for an 8-6 win over #5 Alvernia University (30-15-2) Saturday evening in game 12 of the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Baseball Regional at PEOPLESBank Park.
Shenandoah advances to the losers bracket final and will face Johns Hopkins University at noon on Sunday. Winner of that game advances to the face Wheaton College (Mass.) in the championship round.
The Hornets opened the game with back-to-back hits and took an early 1-0 lead. A one-out single and a hit by pitch loaded the bases, and Luke Nussman singled up the middle to drive in two more for a 3-0 lead.
Neil Dutton singled to reload the bases then a wild pitch and a groundout put the Hornets up 5-0.
"I think realistically I feel like we lost two innings the whole week," said Alvernia head coach
Yogi Lutz. "The big one against Hopkins and the first one today. We played so hard in this tournament and our boys certainly represented the school well."
Alvernia battled back to put two runs on the board in the third and two more in the fourth to pull within a run at 5-4 through four innings.
Dillon Dunne reached on a fielder's choice in the third, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by
Colin Rieger.
Mike Cirilli followed with a single to center to plate Rieger.
"We just tried to get on the board early after giving up the five-spot," said Lutz. "We got some bunts down in some good placement and got more base runners and were able to create some crooked numbers on the scoreboard. We just kept after it. That's just the way these guys are. They're relentless."
Michael Simmerman threw three and two-thirds innings in relief of
Nicholas Marotta and allowed just a pair of unearned runs.
Shenandoah tacked on both of the runs in the fifth for a 7-4 lead and the Crusaders had a serious threat going with bases loaded an no one out in the bottom of the inning. Shenandoah reliever Steve Jones traded a 4-6-3 double play for a run then stranded the potential tying run at second when
Ben Dubas grounded out to first.
Shenandoah had a runner thrown out trying to steal third base in the sixth, and Alvernia threatened with two on and two out in the bottom of the inning, but Jones ended the inning on a grounder to second.
Neither team scored in the seventh and Shenandoah tacked on an insurance run in the eighth on one hit and an Alvernia error.
The Hornets had runners on 2nd and 3rd with two out in the top of the ninth and Abel Arocho hit a slicing ball into the gap in right center that Rieger ran down to end the inning.
Matt Briner singled up the middle to lead off the ninth and
Franco Esposito singled to put the potential tying run on with one out. After a strikeout Dunne hit a soft liner to left that Nick Goode ran down to end the game.
#2 Shenandoah 8, #5 Alvernia 6
