AUGUSTA, N.J. — Wagner was eliminated from the 2026 NEC Tournament after splitting a pair of games on Friday, taking down No. 4 Le Moyne before returning for a rescheduled evening game and ultimately falling to No. 2 FDU.
After losing to the Knights in the opening round on Thursday, Wagner dropped down in the bracket to take on No. 4 Le Moyne in a noon game that the Seahawks took 11-1 in seven innings to move on.
With rain in the forecast for Saturday, the NEC opted to move up the lone elimination game scheduled for the day, so that game was moved up to an 8 p.m. EDT first pitch that had the Seahawks taking on FDU again to stay alive. In a game that took all nine innings to win, the Knights ultimately won 11-10 to advance.
With the loss, Wagner's 2026 season comes to a close with a 29-24 record, with the Seahawks going 23-10 in conference play.
Game 1
Facing elimination, the Seahawks played the opening game on Friday against the Dolphins, who they had swept in the regular season. Wagner ultimately won 11-1, a run-rule win in seven innings that got the team off the field quickly.
It was senior Colin Trizuto's third complete game of the season, a 111-pitch outing that saw him walk just one of 29 batters faced and allowing the single run to score in the seventh. He finishes the season 6-3, protecting the bullpen for when the Seahawks returned to Skylands Stadium for their evening game.
Eight of Wagner's nine hitters recorded a hit, with juniors Joseph Mennella and Dylan Immel each going 2-for-4 and scoring a pair of runs. The Seahawks scored a pair of runs on a two-RBI double from sophomore Jayden Alvarez, then went up 3-0 with an RBI single from junior Jackson Blakley in the third.
Scoring for the third consecutive inning, Wagner put up three on an RBI single and two-run home run from sophomore Matt Sutera, forcing the Dolphins to the bullpen. A single, error and wild pitch had junior Diego Tavarez sitting on third, then Mennella walked and stole second to get into scoring position, scoring on a two-RBI single from senior Nicholas Mazzotta to put the Seahawks up 8-0.
Wagner scored its ninth on an RBI single from Immel, then the tenth came in odd fashion, with junior Jackson Blakley striking out but Mennella was able to score on a throwing error by the Le Moyne catcher as Mazzotta went to steal second.
A sacrifice fly in the seventh broke the shutout, but a walk and stolen base for graduate Lukas Torres had him in scoring position for Mennella, whose RBI single allowed the Seahawks to walk off Le Moyne to advance.
Game 2
Returning to Skylands Stadium for Friday's night game, the Seahawks saw No. 1 LIU take down FDU to send them to the elimination game against Wagner. After roughly an hour between games, the game began at 8:27 p.m. EDT and ultimately lasted over three and a half hours.
Senior Justin Roitman got the start on the mound, going 6.2 innings with 118 pitches, shutting out the Knights for six innings and striking out nine to set a new single-game career high for the righty.
It was a massive offensive night for the Seahawks, with eight hitters in the order combining for 12 hits while walking seven times.
The scoring kicked off with a home run from Immel on a full count to lead off the second, the junior's first in 53 games in 2026. A single, error and walk loaded the bases for Torres, whose sacrifice fly scored Blakley for the second run of the inning, then Sutera added an RBI single to put Wagner up 3-0.
In the third, Immel worked a walk, then scored from first on an RBI single from Mazzotta. The Seahawks went down in order in the fourth, then junior Diego Tavarez hit his first home run of 2026 to lead off the fifth.
Up 5-0, the Seahawks hit a pair of one-out doubles to open the sixth, with the second from Torres scoring sophomore Andrew Marquis. A wild pitch moved Torres to third, scoring on an RBI single from Tavarez. Leading 7-0 heading to the seventh, Roitman walked a pair and gave up two singles to put FDU on the board for the first time. Wagner went to the bullpen with two outs and the bases loaded. Redshirt junior Braden Lowe and junior Keith Davis each appeared out of the bullpen, but unable to find the strike zone, they ultimately allowed five more runs to score and the Seahawks led 7-6 into the eighth.
A two-out RBI single from Mennella scored a run but an odd relay had Tavarez tagged out at third to end the inning. Up 8-6 heading into the eighth, Davis allowed a pair of runs to score then loaded the bases and junior Christopher Collina was called in to relieve, allowing a two-RBI single to put FDU up 10-8 to end the inning.
Trailing by two, Immel worked a leadoff walk in nine pitches, then Mazzotta homered on the first pitch he saw to tie the game at 10. Three outs later, the Knights came to the plate. With the bases loaded, a wild pitch allowed the winning run to score.
