Baseball Split Doubleheader with Pilgrims

MARLBOROUGH, MA: On Sunday afternoon, the Anna Maria College Baseball team faced off with the New England College Pilgrims for a non-conference doubleheader at Marlborough High School.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Sunday, March 26, 2023
• Game 1: NEC 2, Anna Maria 5
• Game 2: NEC 3, Anna Maria 0
• Records: New England College Pilgrims 3-9 | Anna Maria AMCATS 7-8

HIGHLIGHTS

• GAME 1
  • In the first game two AMCAT pitchers combined to limit the Pilgrims to two runs on two hits while striking out 12 in seven innings.
  • The Pilgrims were the first ones on the scoreboard, putting up two runs in the top of the second, but the AMCATS bounced back with a pair of their own in the bottom of the third to tie the game.
  • Freshman third baseman David Doherty (North Smithfield, RI) led off the inning with an infield single and was moved to second on a sac bunt by freshman catcher Brady Aylward (Southington, CT) before moving to third on a single right by senior designated hitter James Powers (Folsom, CA). Junior second baseman Christian Villa (Concord, CA) then scored Doherty with a ground-rule double to straight away centerfield. With the speedy Powers forced to stop at third on the ground-rule double, graduate student right fielder was still able to cash in the run with a sacrifice fly to center field to tie it up.
  • In the bottom of the fourth, the AMCATS broke the tie with three runs. Graduate student shortstop Kosta Drosidis (Holden, MA) was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and moved to second on a passed ball. A single by freshman left fielder Dominic Brown (Sturbridge, MA) put runners on the corners for senior centerfielder Hunter Dunithan (Reno, NV). Brown stole second without a throw and Dunithan then singled through the right side to drive in Drosidis and move Brown to third, to once again put runners on the corners.
  • With the situation repeating, the AMCATS decided to repeat the results by having Dunithan steal second base without a throw. This time however Doherty's attempt to push one through the right side was stopped by the first baseman, but Brown slid in under the catcher's tag as Doherty reached on a fielder's choice and Dunithan moved to third.
  • Let me know if you have heard of this situation, with runners on the corners AMCATS coach Dan Briand had Doherty steal second and for the first time the Pilgrims decided to do something about it, but Doherty was called safe and Dunithan scampered home with the AMCAT's fifth run on the delayed steal.
  • Making his third appearance in six days, junior pitcher Anthony Pingeton (Charlton, MA) pitched the first five innings, striking out 10 batters while allowing only two unearned runs on two hits. With the win, Pingeton improved his record to 3-1 and lowered his ERA to 3.47.
  • Freshman lefthander Conor Francesconi (Beverly, MA) pitched a perfect two innings to earn his second career save, retiring all six batters he faced including two strikeouts.
  • The Pilgrims starting pitcher, Tim Krol, allowed five runs on six hits over six innings to fall to 0-3 on the year despite pitching a complete game.
• GAME 2
  • In the second game, sophomore starter Michael Shorey (Northbridge, MA) took a tough-luck loss to even his record at 2-2 while allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits.
  • The Pilgrims scored all three of their runs on two key plays. The first was a two-run homerun down the leftfield line by Devin Parsons in the third innings. The second was a triple to deep left center by Brett Patnode on which the relay throw to third got away and allowed him to score.
  • Jeremy Rosenberg (Boynton Beach, FL) had a pair of singles to lead the AMCATS offense in the second game while Villa, Marifiote, and Aylward all added a single each.
  • Pilgrim's pitcher Austin Hazzard scattered five hits over seven innings to earn his first career complete game and shutout to improve his season record to 2-1.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• By going all seven innings in game two, Shorey recorded his second career complete game. His first came in a 5-1 win over Dean College in the second game of a doubleheader on April 24^th of last year.
• The five AMCAT stolen bases were the second-highest total that the AMCATS have recorded this season, topped only by six in their season opener against Penn State-Abington.
• Speaking of stolen bases, senior pinch runner Misael Guzman's (Worcester, MA) in the sixth inning of game one, was his first with the AMCATS but the 20^th of his career after collecting 19 across two seasons with Hilbert College Hawks.

UP NEXT:

Anna Maria will be back in action on Thursday when they will play host to the Castleton University Spartans for a non-conference matchup at the New England Baseball Complex. The first pitch is scheduled for 3 PM.

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