Junior Armand Rugel pitched 7.2 innings of relief to earn the victory for Stonehill (PHOTO BY Richard Orr) |
WALTHAM, Mass. (March 27, 2013) – The Stonehill College baseball team captured a 15th inning victory over the Bentley University Falcons in a Northeast-10 Conference showdown at DeFelice Field in Waltham, Mass.
Junior transfer Anthony Pagano (Cranston, R.I./Cranston West/Elms College) roped a 15th inning RBI-single to break the tie for the Skyhawks. Pagano reached base four times on two hits and two walks. Senior James DeAlo (Briarcliff Manor, N.Y./Briarcliff) also had a multi-hit game, registering three hits and two RBIs for the Skyhawks.
Kevin Korwek (Madison, Conn./Daniel Hand) led the way for Bentley with two hits and an RBI. Freshman Bryan Rocha (Rehoboth, Mass./Dighton-Rehoboth) and junior Nate Witowski (Melrose, Mass./Malden Catholic/Avon Old Farms) also posted RBIs for the Falcons.
Junior Armand Rugel (Middletown, R.I./Middletown) pitched 7.2 innings in relief to earn the victory for the Skyhawks. Rugel entered the game in the eighth inning holding the Falcons scoreless and giving up five hits and four walks, while striking out eight. Sophomore Neal Horan (Mashpee, Mass./BC High) started for Stonehill, striking out four batters in eight innings and giving up two runs (one earned) on four hits.
Junior Scott Lueders (Mansfield, Mass./Newton South) was tagged with the loss for Bentley. Lueders tossed 6.1 innings of relief, giving up one run (zero earned) on just two hits and two walks. Lamarre Ray (Lynn, Mass./Pingree) earned the start and pitched eight and two-thirds innings, yielding three earned runs on 11 hits, while striking out seven.
After four scoreless innings, Stonehill opened the scoring in the fifth. With Pagano on second following a walk and Christian Baglini (Milford, Conn./Notre Dame High) on first after a single, DeAlto roped an RBI-single to center field.
Junior Anthony Pagano hit the game-winning RBI-single in the 15th inning (PHOTO BY Richard Orr) |
Stonehill added to its lead in the seventh. Matt Anziano (Belchertown, Mass./Belchertown) led off the inning with a single to center field. Two batters later, DeAlto hit an RBI-double to center field to make it 2-0.
The Falcons responded in the bottom half of the seventh to tie the score at two. With runners on first and third, Rocha reached on error by the second baseman to score the first run. Three batters later Witowsk grounded out to the shortstop to drive in the Falcon's second run.
Bentley added a third run in the bottom of the eighth. After a single and a walk, Korwek hit an RBI-single through the right side to give Bentley a 3-2 advantage.
With two-outs in the ninth, the Skyhawks tied the game to send it to extra innings. Pagano led off the inning with a single, making way for Chris Hoyt's (Walpole, Mass./Xaverian Brothers) game-tying double to left field.
The score remained tied until the top of the 15th inning. Dan Fratus (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) opened the inning by reaching on an error by the shortstop. Two batters later, Pagano broke the tie with an RBI-single to left field.
The Falcons threatened in the bottom of the 15th, but Rugel shut the door, retiring the final three batters in order.
Stonehill (13-8, 1-0 NE-10) returns to action on Thursday when it hosts Southern New Hampshire at 3:30 pm. Next up for Bentley (7-13, 0-1 NE-10) is a matchup with Saint Anselm College on Saturday at 12:00 pm in Manchester, N.H.
For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter and Facebook. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks mobile app on iTunes and the Android Market.
