Photo Credit: Steve McLaughlin Photography
Box Score |
Box Score (HTML)
Norwich, CT – The 2019 Wagner baseball team's season came to a close on Day Three of the 2019 Northeast Conference (NEC) Championships, as the No. 3 seeded Seahawks dropped a 7-3 decision to the No. 2 seed, Central Connecticut, on Saturday afternoon.
Wagner finished the season with an overall record of 19-32 while the Blue Devils, who stand at 28-21, squares off against the top-seed Bryant later this afternoon from Dodd Stadium.
Junior DH
Freddy Sabido and senior 3B
Will Johnson each had two hits to lead the Seahawk offense while junior 1B
Tyler Sanfillippo drove in two of the three runs for the Green & White. Johnson added the other RBI.
Senior RHP
Eric Ligda went four innings in which he allowed five runs on nine hits in suffering the loss. The West Grove, PA native yielded one walk and had five strikeouts. Junior
Nick Zuppe came on in relief of Ligda, throwing 2.1 frames without allowing a hit or a run but walked three and struck out one.
CCSU's Patrick Mitchell went eight innings in picking up the victory for the Blue Devils, as he allowed the three Seahawk runs on seven hits while walking two and striking out six batters. Jared Gallagher pitched a scoreless ninth in preserving the win for Central Connecticut.
Peyton Stephens led the Blue Devils with three hits while Chandler Debrosse, TT Bowens and Buddy Dewaine each had two hits apiece with Dave Matthews and Dewaine driving in two RBIs apiece. Jake Siracusa and Chris Kanios also added an RBI.
Both starters didn't allow a run until the bottom of the fourth when Wagner struck for the first score of the contest. Sabido led off with a triple to right center to start the Seahawk stanza. With one out, Johnson reached on a fielding error from the CCSU second baseman that allowed Sabido to cross the plate, giving Wagner a 1-0 lead.
The Blue Devils put up five runs in the top of the fifth in taking a 5-1 lead. Debrosse singled to left center to start the CCSU inning. After Sam Loda reached on a fielder's choice, Debrosse scored the tying run on a wild pitch from Ligda.
Bowens then reached on an infield single. With now two runners on, Matthews doubled to center field that scored Loda, giving CCSU a 2-1 lead. Dewaine followed with a RBI single through the left side that scored Bowens to make it 3-1.
Siracusa took Ligda's 1-2 pitch to left, which plated home Matthews and gave the Blue Devils a 4-1 lead and ended Ligda's afternoon. Zuppe came on and walked Stephens before Kanios lofted a sacrifice fly to center field that scored Dewaine to make it 5-1.
The Blue Devils nearly went ahead 6-1, but Siracusa was thrown out at the plate after Zuppe flipped the ball to freshman catcher,
Johnny Kampes, who applied the tag of Siracusa.
Wagner got two runs back in the bottom of the fifth, trimming the deficit to 5-3. Kampes drew a one out walk before sophomore
Emil Matti singled back up-the-middle. A walk to Sabido loaded the bases. On a 2-2 pitch from Mitchell, Sanfillippo ripped a two-run single to left field that drew the Seahawks closer.
The score remained that way until the top of the eighth when the Blue Devils added two more scores in building a 7-3 advantage. Matt Bertochi doubled to left and moved to third on a single from Debrosse.
With one out, reliever
Nick LePre intentionally walked Bowens that loaded the bases and concluded his afternoon as the Seahawks went to the bullpen in the form of left-hander,
Keaton Freire.
Freire walked Matthews that scored Bertochi and the next batter, Dewaine, lined out to junior LF
Eric Lauk, which brought in Debrosse and increased the CCSU lead to 7-3.
Wagner tried to rally back in their half of the ninth, as sophomore
Mike Ruggiero singled through the left side to kick start the inning. Sophomore
Brandon Hall came on as a pinch-hitter and reached on a fielder's choice after Ruggiero was forced out at second.
A walk to senior
Anthony Pecora gave the Seahawks runners on first and second but Gallagher was able to get Matti to fly out to center and Sabido to end the game on a ground back to him on the mound.
Follow Us: #CHAOSonthehill
Wagner Athletics:
Wagner Baseball:
