Baseball Punches Ticket to GNAC Championship Series with Win Over Elms
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Elms | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
|
Mitchell | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | X | 12 | 14 | 0 |
NEW LONDON, Conn. – The top-seeded Mitchell College baseball team punched its ticket to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship Series for the third consecutive season on Sunday afternoon, silencing No. 8 Elms College, 12–0, on the final day of Pod A play at Alumni Field.
With the win, the Mariners earn the right to host the upcoming best-of-three GNAC Championship Series, which will take place on Thursday, May 7 and Friday, May 8. Mitchell's opponent will be the winner of Pod B, hosted by the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.), and will be either third-seeded Saint Joseph's College (Maine) or No. 7 Lasell University.
The Mariners wasted no time getting on the board, scoring four runs in the opening inning. Junior Chas Terni Jr. (Montville, Conn.) drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly, and senior Kenneth Miller Jr. (New London, Conn.) followed with an RBI single. Freshman Angel Rodriguez Cruz (Cidra, P.R.) capped the inning with a two-run double to give Mitchell an early 4–0 lead.
The early lead proved more than enough for starting pitcher Dom Yarson (Ewing, N.J.), who was dominant, tossing 7.0 scoreless innings while allowing seven hits and striking out two to earn the win.
Mitchell added to its advantage in the fourth on another RBI single by Miller Jr., and then broke the game open with a four-run sixth inning. Rodriguez Cruz delivered an RBI double, while junior Jayden Sgro (Glastonbury, Conn.) added a two-run single and sophomore Ryan Dennis (Ellington, Conn.) followed with an RBI double to stretch the lead to 9–0.
The Mariners put the finishing touches on the win in the seventh when junior Will Estronza (New Britain, Conn.) belted a three-run inside-the-park home run to push the lead to 12–0.
Mitchell finished with 14 hits in the contest and was led by junior Christopher Piscione (Cranston, R.I.), who went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple, and two runs scored. Miller Jr. also recorded three hits, while Rodriguez Cruz doubled twice and drove in three runs. Additionally, Sgro turned in a 2-for-4 day at the plate, scoring twice and driving in a pair.
On the mound, senior Jacob Quiles (Wallkill, N.Y.) and Terni Jr. combined for two scoreless innings of relief to complete the shutout.
Elms finished with seven hits, with Colin Faber and Aidan Daugherty each recording a pair. Andrew Ciaglo took the loss after allowing 12 runs on 13 hits over 7.0 innings.
The Blazers finish their season with an overall record of 15-23.
