Baseball Falls Short on Final Day of NECC Championship
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Daniel Webster | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 19 | 6 |
|
Mitchell | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 2 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mitchell | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 1 |
|
Daniel Webster | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | X | 9 | 14 | 1 |
NASHUA, N.H. – The Mitchell College baseball team saw its title hopes dashed on Sunday in a pair of losses to Daniel Webster College in the finals of the New England Collegiate College Championship at Harvey Woods Field.
Needing two victories to earn the title, host and top-seeded Daniel Webster scored its most memorable comeback in program history, waging a late-inning rally to capture the opener 12-8, and then came back from deficits of 5-0 and 6-1 in the nightcap to score a 9-6 victory in the winner-take-all final game.
The Eagles, who improved to 28-10 overall, now await an opponent and destination for a second-straight trip to the NCAA Championship.
Tournament Most Valuable Player Rich Lizotte took top honors with a remarkable performance in the field, at the plate and on the mound. The senior shortstop and reliever batted a tournament-best .455 with three doubles and three RBI, committed just one error in the field in 41 chances, and added three saves while allowing no earned runs over 3.2 innings. On Sunday alone, Lizotte combined to hit 7-for-11 with two doubles, scored four runs, knocked in one, stole a base, was flawless in the field in 14 chances, and picked up saves in both victories.
In the final game, DWC fell behind 5-0 in the second inning and 6-1 in the fifth before stunning the Mariners with a game-changing sixth inning. The Eagles sent 12 men to the plate and rapped out seven hits, scoring eight runs to take a 9-6 lead they would never relinquish.
Josh Chasse, Darrik Marstaller and Erick Bourdeau all knocked in two runs apiece. Bourdeau finished 3-for-4 while Joe Morin added two hits and knocked in a run. Kyle Brigham and Elliot Kilgore knocked in single runs.
Senior righty Zack Hurley pitched one of the best games of his career, coming in for rookie Sean Hannon who was chased in the five-run second. Hurley effectively shut the door, allowing one run over the next six innings, striking out a season high seven and walking two.
Enter Lizotte, who was touched for one unearned run in the top of the ninth. Mitchell put the tying run at the plate with two outs, but Brigham pulled in a pop foul on the third base side to end it and send the Eagles on to the NCAAs.
Junior Marc Dorsi led Mitchell in the final with three hits and knocked in a run, and sophomore Gavin LaLima added a pair of hits. Freshman Josh Zurita took the loss (2-2) in relief of starter Tyler Shamas, who made his second start in as many days.
DWC forced the seventh game despite nearly imploding with a season-worst six errors in the 12-8 victory. The Eagles made up for the gaffes by pounding out a remarkable 19 hits, and every member of the lineup knocked in at least one run and seven had at least two hits.
In all, the teams combined for 20 runs, 33 hits and eight errors.
Lizotte went 5-for-6 with two doubles, scored three times and knocked in one. Only Bourdeau and Morin knocked in more than one run, as each had two RBI.
Sophomore Evan Peck was 3-for-5 while knocking in one, and junior Kenneth Olszewski had a two-run double in the sixth. LaLima also had two hits.
Mike Patane earned the win with two innings of relief of starter Greg Dubela, who started on one day of rest. Lizotte came on to toss a final and perfect 1.2 innings.
Reliever Jeff Dowling was touched with the loss (1-3).
The Eagles built a 7-1 lead with one run in the top of the first, three in the second, and three in the top of the fifth. But Mitchell answered with three in the bottom of the fifth and tied it in the sixth on Olszewski's two-bagger. RBI doubles from Kilgore and Lizotte in the eighth put the Eagles up for good, and RBI singles from Brigham and Tyler Bonin in the ninth iced it.
The all-tournament team included Bonin and DuBela from DWC, Olszewski, Shamas and freshman Neftali Arroyo from Mitchell, Dan McCormack and Curtis Lebeau from Elms, and Nick Lemay and Tony Cantalupo from Becker.
