Lakewood, NJ -- Central Connecticut’s Barry Hertzler pitched eight innings of five-hit baseball leading the top-seeded Blue Devils to an 8-1 victory over fourth seeded University of Maryland Baltimore County on Friday afternoon at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ. Hertzler won his league-leading ninth game of the season.
Central scored first with an unearned run in the bottom of the first inning. Brad Muldoon led off with a single and later advanced to third on a throwing error by the UMBC shortstop. He scored on a double steal attempt, Keith Stegbauer was thrown out at second base as Muldoon scored. Central took a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Rob Hosgood led off the inning with a triple to centerfield and scored on a single by Tom Pezzello.
In the bottom of the third, Muldoon led off with a double and moved to third on a bunt single by Stegbauer. Tim D’Aquila doubled scoring Muldoon and then Phil Rothkugel to left field scoring two runs. Nick Macellaro singled to right field scoring Rothkugel with the fourth run of the inning giving the Blue Devils a 6-0 lead.
In the fifth inning, Rothkugel reached on an error by the shortstop and went to second on a single from Hosgood. Rothkugel went to third on an error by the catcher and scored on an RBI fielder’s choice from Macellaro. Two UMBC errors in the bottom of the sixth inning led to the eighth Central run.
UMBC scored a single run in the ninth inning on a sacrifice fly from Isaac Friedel off of Central reliever Nick Macellaro.
Hertzler pitched eight innings scattering just five hits and striking out nine and walking only one batter. Hosgood finished the game with three hits while D’Aquila, Macellaro and Rothkugel each had two RBI in the win. Chris Yetter had two hits for the Retrievers in the loss.
Game Two
#3 Monmouth 2, #2 St. Francis (NY) 0
Lakewood, NJ -- Monmouth’s Andrew Palmieri (Freehold, NJ/St. John Vianney) and Chuck Garrison (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) combined for a five hit shutout to lead the third-seeded Hawks over second-seeded St. Francis (NY) in first round NEC Baseball Tournament action on Saturday afternoon at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ.
Monmouth advances to play top-seeded Central Connecticut State at 3:30 p.m., while St. Francis will take on UMBC at 7:00 p.m. in an elimination game.
Monmouth got on the board early, taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Lance Koenig (Brielle NJ/Manasquan) walked, stole second and moved to third on a ground out by Frank Pilitowski (Franklinville, NJ/Delsea Regional). Evan Clancy (Brick, NJ/Manasquan) followed with an RBI double down the right field line to score Koenig.
The Hawks added a run in the eighth as Koenig reached on an error and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Pilitowski. After Clancy grounded out to third, Mike St. Martine (Levittown, PA/Truman) drove a double to left center to extend the lead to 2-0.
Palmieri got two quick outs in the bottom of the ninth, but was chased after Greg Colonna (Staten Island, NY/Msgr. Farrell) reached on an error and Vinny Caiazza (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) walked, brining the winning run to the plate. The Hawks brought Garrison in to pitch to pinch hitter Thomas Curry (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian), and got him to fly out to end the threat and the game.
Palmieri (6-4) was solid for the majority of the game, at one point retiring eight consecutive batters from the second inning to the fifth. He threw 8.2 innings, allowing five hits and two walks while striking out two. Garrison got the final out to earn his sixth save of the season.
Koenig stole two bases and scored both runs for Monmouth, which improved to 23-25 on the season.
Anthony Esposito (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) took the loss after allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits while striking out five. Caiazza went 3-for-3 on the afternoon, while Delfaus and Molinini added a hit each for the Terriers, who fell to 21-20-1.
Lakewood, NJ -- Top seeded Central Connecticut advanced to the Northeast Conference Tournament final with a 2-1 victory over Monmouth on Saturday afternoon at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Monmouth’s Fran Rotella (Secaucus, NJ) singled to center field with Frank Pilitowski (Franklinville, NJ) on second base. Pilitowski tried to score the tying run but Central centerfielder Brad Muldoon (Wareham, MA) threw him out at the plate to end the game.
Neither team had a hit in the first four innings. Monmouth starting pitcher Jim Carone (Point Pleasant, NJ) retired the side in order in each of the first four innings. Seven of those outs came via the flyball, including three pop-ups to the infield.
The Blue Devils got on the board first in the top of the fifth inning. Phil Rothkugel (Plainville, CT) walked to leadoff the inning and advanced to second on a bunt from Rob Hosgood (Clifton Park, NY). With one out, Tom Pezzello (Waterford, CT) got the game’s first hit, a single to right center scoring Rothkugel and moving Nick Macellaro (Plainville, CT) to third base. Macellaro scored the second run of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Nick Mullins (Bristol, CT), giving the Blue Devils the 2-0 lead.
Central starter Lewis Pappariella (Palmyra, PA) allowed four baserunners, including two hit-by-pitch and a walk, but did not allow a hit to the Hawks in his first five innings. Monmouth’s Lance Koenig’s (Brielle, NJ) bunt single to the third baseman broke up the no-hitter.
Mike St. Martine (Levittown, PA) led off the bottom of the seventh with a double down the left field line. Rotella sacrificed him to third base and he scored on an RBI groundout by Marc Weres (Union, NJ) cutting the Blue Devil lead to 2-1.
Central (30-15-2) will play on 3:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoon and will need just one victory to claim in the 2003 NEC Tournament Championship. Monmouth (23-26) falls into the loser’s bracket and will play at 12:00 p.m. on Sunday vs. the winner of the UMBC/St. Francis (NY) game being played at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday night.
Carone pitched all nine inning for the Hawks, allowing just two hits and two runs. He struck out four and walked just one. Central’s Pezzello had both hits for the Blue Devils.
Pappariella allowed just four hits while striking out four Monmouth batters and walking one. He picked up his seventh win of the season in leading the Blue Devils to their fifth straight NEC Tournament win and 30th win of the season. It is the first time in school history the Blue Devils have won 30 games in three consecutive seasons.
Lakewood, NJ -- UMBC’s Brad Glascock (Bel Air, MD/C. Milton Wright) hit an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to give the fourth-seeded Retrievers a 1-0 win over second-seeded St. Francis (NY) in an elimination game in the NEC Baseball Tournament on Saturday evening at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ. UMBC advances to play third-seeded Monmouth at noon on Sunday, which will also serve as an elimination game. The winner of that contest will advance to face top-seeded Central Connecticut State in the championship game at 3:30.
Glascock came up to bat with two runners on and singled up the middle, scoring Scott Kosmicky (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Curley) from second base to win the game and keep the Retrievers alive in the tournament. UMBC improved to 20-26 on the season, while the Terriers ended their year at 21-21-1.
UMBC’s Eric Butkiewicz (Plainville, CT/Plainville) earned the complete game shutout, the first of his career, scattering six hits and four walks while striking out seven over nine innings of work.
St. Francis’ Paul Lepore (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Twp.) took the loss after allowing one earned run on six hits while striking out five over 8.1 innings.
The Terriers stranded eight runners on base, but only advanced two runners as far as second base.
Lakewood, NJ -- Monmouth advanced to the NEC Baseball Championship game with an 11-2 victory over fourth-seeded UMBC on Sunday afternoon at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ. The third-seeded Hawks will play top-seeded Central Connecticut State at 3:30 p.m. in the championship round. A Blue Devil win gives them their second straight NEC crown, while the Hawks must take two in a row from CCSU to win the title.
Monmouth jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first as Lance Koenig (Brielle, NJ/Manasquan) doubled and scored on an RBI single by Frank Pilitowski (Franklinville, NJ/Delsea Regional). UMBC tied the game at one in the bottom of the inning as Mike Orlando (Rochester, NY/W. Irondequoit) doubled and scored on a single by Scott Kosmicky (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Curley).
The Hawks regained the lead for good with three runs in the third. With two outs, Mike St. Martine (Levittown, PA/Truman) singled and scored on a double by Fran Rotella (Secaucus, NJ/St. Peter’s Prep) to make it 2-1. Marc Weres (Union, NJ/Union) followed with a single to center to score Rotella, and Chris Ciminiello (St. James, NY/Smithtown) knocked Weres in with a double to left to push the lead to 4-1.
Monmouth tacked on two more runs in the fourth as Koenig walked and scored on a double by Pilitowski, who moved to third on an error. After a walk to St. Martine, Rotella smacked an infield single, scoring Pilitowski to make it 6-1. In the bottom of the fifth, Koenig singled home Ciminiello to stretch the Hawks’ lead to 7-1. Monmouth scored four more times in the sixth fueled by an RBI double by Rotella and RBI singles by Mike Kelly (Freehold, NJ/ Freehold Boro) and Koenig to make it 11-1.
The Retrievers got one run back with one out in the bottom of the ninth as Derek Fritz (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Curley) reached on an error and scored on an RBI double to left center by Chris Becraft (Clarksville, MD/River Hill), but MU reliever Brian Driber (Point Pleasant, NJ/Point Boro) got Kosmicky to ground out to second and Chris Yetter (Columbia, MD/Wilde Lake) to fly out to left to end the game.
UMBC's season ended at 20-27, while Monmouth improved to 24-26.
Koenig, who tied Monmouth’s single-season record for doubles after hitting his 19th and 20th of the season, finished the afternoon 4-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs. Rotella added three hits, three RBIs and two runs for the Hawks. Glen Keeton (Middletown, NY/Minisink Valley) earned his third win of the season after allowing one earned run on nine hits while striking out seven. Driber pitched the ninth, giving up an unearned run and a hit.
UMBC’s Tom Ballenger (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) took the loss after allowing four earned runs on seven hits over 2.2 innings. Joe Muscillo (Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch) went 3-for-4, while Kosmicky and Becraft drove in a run each.
Lakewood, NJ -- Central Connecticut State made it back-to-back Northeast Conference Baseball Championships and became the first team to defend its conference title since 1998-99, with a 4-0 win over third-seed Monmouth University on Sunday afternoon in Lakewood, NJ. With the win, the Blue Devils will make their second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and improve their record to 31-15-2 on the season. Monmouth finishes the year with a 24-27 mark.
Central threatened in the top of the first inning against Monmouth starter Scott Zadina (Linwood, NJ). With one out, Keith Stegbauer (Seminole, FL) and Tim D’Aquila (Middletown, CT) singled to put runners on first and third. Phil Rothkugel (Plaineville, CT) lined into a double play to the first baseman to end the inning. Monmouth put runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the second but Central starter Zack Herrick (Norwich, CT) forced Chris Ciminiello (St. James, NY) to pop-out to end the inning. Central’s third inning ended just like the first two, with a double play. With Dan Tarnowski (Colchester, CT) on second base, Brad Muldoon (Wareham, MA) lined out to the second baseman who doubled up Tarnowski at second base.
Central broke the tie in the fourth inning when D’Aquila and Rothkugel walked to start the inning. Rob Hosgood (Clifton Park, NY) then used a bunt single to load the bases. Nick Macellaro’s (Plainville, CT) sacrifice fly gave the Blue Devils the 1-0 lead. The fourth inning ending double-play of the game ended Central’s sixth inning and stranded its sixth runner of the game.
In the Monmouth sixth, Chuck Gookins (Toms River, NJ) led off the inning with a double and advanced to third with two outs. Gookins was thrown out at the plate attempting to steal home ending the sixth inning.
Central stretched the lead to 3-0 in the top of the eighth inning when Hosgood’s double scored D’Aquila (single) and Rothkugel (walk) who were on first and second. Tom Pezzello’s (Waterford, CT) sacrifice fly scored Hosgood and stretched the lead to 4-0.
Herrick pitched eight innings, allowing no earned runs and was awarded the NEC Tournament Most Valuable Player for his effort. He struck out three and walked four to earn his sixth victory of the season. |