Silva Plates Game-Winning Run in 10th to Send Baseball to Semifinal of ECAC Metro Championship
HOBOKEN, N.J. (May 6, 2009) – Senior first baseman Dan Silva drove in the winning run with the bases loaded in the bottom half of the tenth inning as the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team pulled out a 4-3 victory over the College of Mount St. Vincent during the first round of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Metro Division Championship Wednesday night in Hoboken, N.J. The Ducks were held to just two hits through five innings as both bullpens battled to keep their teams in it. Stevens came back to tie the game at 3-all off a three-run sixth inning. Freshman pitcher Vincent Vinci was called upon in the sixth and pitched five shutout innings having allowed just three hits, while striking out eight batters, en route to his second win of the season (2-3). The Ducks move to 20-19 on the year as the Dolphins finish the 2009 campaign, 19-17. This marks the fifth time in Stevens history that the Ducks have produced a 20-win season.
The Dolphins took an early 1-0 advantage after freshman outfielder Ryan Hollborn (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) plated junior outfielder Joe Blackford (Stewartsville, N.J.) off a groundout to the right side of the infield in the second inning.
Following a pair of scoreless innings, the Mount posted a pair of runs with two outs, to take a 3-0 lead through four and half innings. Sophomore outfielder James Labartino (Holbrook, N.Y.) kept the Dolphins alive as he reached base off a single up the middle. The ensuing batter, sophomore first baseman Michael Pope (Massapequa, N.Y.) singled to right field to put Labertino 90 feet from home. It was senior infielder Mike Ruckdaschel (East Meadow, N.Y.) that recorded the RBI off a single to left field. Blackford doubled to left centerfield to drive in Pope for the second run of the inning. The inning ended off a deep fly ball with the bases loaded to right field that brought junior Russ Grimes back to the warning track for a long third out.
In the bottom half of the sixth, Stevens knotted the contest at 3-all. After a groundout to third for the first out of the inning, sophomore third baseman Ken Meerendonk launched his seventh homer of the season to left center to cut the deficit to a pair of runs. Then with two outs, sophomore catcher Denis Ackermann started the rally with a double to left centerfield. Silva drew a walk as junior left fielder Anthony Andrews followed it up with an infield single to load the bases. Freshman T.J. Alcorn delivered a two-run double to right center to drive in Silva and Ackermann to tie things up. The inning ended as the Ducks left a pair of runners stranded.
Meerendonk led off the 10th with a single to left field. He then took second on a wild pitch. Grimes reached on an error by the first baseman as Meerendonk advanced to third. Grimes successfully swiped second as runners were now on second third. Ackermann drew a walk to load the base pads. It was then Silva’s RBI single to right field that propelled the Ducks into the semifinals of the ECAC Metro Championship.
Blackford and Pope both finished 2-for-5 with a run scored for the Dolphins. Freshman pitcher Anthony Mongelli (Flushing, N.Y.) got the nod and threw for six innings, allowed three earned runs on six hits and struck out six batters. Junior pitcher John Olsen (Seaford, N.Y.) then came in to take care of the seventh and eighth innings before he was pulled in the ninth. He rendered just one hit in 10 batters faced. Blackford was tagged with the loss (2-1) as he gave up the winning run on two hits.
For Stevens, Alcorn led the way having batted 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI. Silva finished 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored as Meerendonk went 2-for-5 and roped his sixth homer of the season.
Stevens is set to square off against the University of Rutgers-Newark on Friday at the Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium in Newark, N.J. at 4 p.m. Stevens fell to the Scarlet Raiders, 14-6 earlier this season.
