Trevor Lacosse (R) didn't let his teammates down.
The “if necessary” game is necessary. Top-seeded Bryant battled itself out of the losers’ bracket and into a winner-take-all championship tilt that will unfold on Sunday at Dodd Stadium. The defending champion Bulldogs started the day by blanking No. 4 seed Fairleigh Dickinson in an elimination game. Next, Bryant took on unbeaten Sacred Heart in a championship round affair. Needing a victory to live another day, the Bulldogs delivered a 5-2 win. Bryant benefitted from a pair of quality starting pitching performances. Starters Brandon Bingel and Trevor Lacosse tossed a combined 16.1 innings and allowed only two runs on Saturday. The deciding game of the 2015 NEC Tournament is set for 12:00 pm ET. Watch it live at necfrontrow.com.
Game 6
#1 Bryant 5, #3 Sacred Heart 2
Click Here For Box Score
Click Here For Highlights
Trevor Lacosse threw a career-high 8.1 innings and the Bulldogs’ offense gave the southpaw enough support in what was a do-or-die game against Sacred Heart.
Lacosse left with one out in the ninth inning, handing a 5-2 lead to Jim Davitt. Earning the save, the right-handed reliever fanned the first batter he faced and retired the next on a squibber to the left of the mound.
Lacosse’s final line included two earned runs allowed on six hits and one walk. The lefty stuck out seven batters en-route to his fifth victory of the season.
“I just tried to pitch to contact,” said Lacosse who retired 13 batters in a row at one point. “I tried to come out and throw strikes early, get ahead in the count.”
Dealing Sacred Heart its first loss of the tournament, the Bulldogs forced a winner-take-all title tilt that will begin on Sunday at 12:00 pm ET.
Bryant held a 1-0 lead entering the ninth inning before its bats woke up in a big way. The Bulldogs opened the final frame with four consecutive hits en-route to a 5-0 advantage.
Outfielder Matt Albanese started the string by beating out an infield single. First baseman Robby Rinn followed, pulling a double into the leftfield corner to score Albanese.
John Mullen’s infield single set the table for catcher Buck McCarthy. After producing three RBI in Saturday’s elimination game against Fairleigh Dickinson, the veteran backstop shot a single down the rightfeld line to chase Rinn home.
After Zach Wood was retired on a fielder’s choice that erased McCarthy for the first out of the inning, AJ Zarozny followed with a RBI single and second baseman Cole Fabio finished the scoring with a sac fly to left.
Sacred Heart rallied in the ninth before Davitt slammed the door shut.
Jesus Medina, who threw 7.0 innings of one-run ball while batting in the DH spot, led off by singling. Victor Sorrento sent Medina home with a one-out double that cut Bryant’s lead to 5-1.
Freshman PJ DeFilippo, the ensuing batter, delivered his second base knock of the game to plate Sorrento.
Game 5
#1 Bryant 7, #4 Fairleigh Dickinson 0
Click Here For Box Score
Click Here For Highlights
Bryant’s all-NEC infielders were the driving forces behind a 7-0 shutout victory over Fairleigh Dickinson in Saturday’s elimination game at the 2015 Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament.
First baseman Robby Rinn and second baseman Cole Fabio produced three hits apiece as Bryant fought its way back into the tournament’s championship round for the third year in a row.
Moving from third base to the mound for the game, Brandon Bingel twirled a gem. The right-hander scattered six hits and six walks over 8.0 scoreless frames. Bingel, who hit for himself, went 1-for-4 at the plate with one run scored.
Ryan Brennan and Pat McClure each produced a pair of hits for FDU, which managed only six singles in defeat.
Bryant owned a 1-0 lead with two outs in the fifth inning when it jumped on FDU starter Logan Frati for four runs.
With Bingel on 1st and Fabio on 3rd, Rinn doubled to push one run home. Senior John Mullen followed by producing a two-run single and catcher Buck McCarthy added a run with a base knock down the leftfield line.
McCarthy went 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBI and one run scored.