Box Score FAIRFIELD, Conn. – After six scoreless innings in which 13 runners were left on base, including ten in scoring position, the Sacred Heart baseball finally fell in the 13th frame on Kevin Radziewicz's walkoff single at cross-town rival Fairfield on Tuesday afternoon. The loss is the second in a row for the Pioneers, who had previously been on their second seven-game winning streak of the season, dropping them to 21-16 on the season.
Michael Conti came in to score the game-winning unearned run after leading off the inning with a single. The next batter, Drew Arciuolo, would attempt to sacrifice him over to second and did so successfully, but SHU committed an error on the play that allowed Conti to reach third. Radziewicz then sent his walk off to left field on an 0-2 pitch.
The game-winner was Radziewicz's fourth hit of the afternoon, capping a 4-6 day in which he also scored twice and walked. He was one of four Stags with multiple base knocks, as Fairfield (20-18) outhit Sacred Heart 14-10. Joining him was Conti, Jake Salpietro, Mac Crispino and Jack Gethings.
Jesus Medina was the offensive force for SHU, as he finished 3-5 with a double, RBI, run and walk. Victor Sorrento was the only other Pioneer with multiple base hits, going 2-5 with a RBI and walk.
The bullpen also turned in a great performance for Sacred Heart, pitching 8.0 innings and allowing just one earned run. Ethan Lonardelli came on to escape a jam in the sixth with a double play and would also get out of a bases loaded situation in the seventh. Breton LaRose then threw a score a scoreless eighth, stranding a runner on third, before Alex Perry provided three innings of scoreless relief, also getting out of a bases loaded jam in the 11th. In just his second career collegiate appearance, John Cerretani worked a 1-2-3 12th before being tabbed with the loss due to the unearned run.
The Fairfield bullpen was just as good if not better, with Jake Binder, George Molner, Peter Horn and Brendan Harkin each going at least one inning scoreless. The star was Aaron Howell though, as he improved to 5-2 after 4.1 innings of one-hit ball. Starter Ryan O'Connor last just 3.2 frames, surrendering seven hits that led to four runs.
SHU Starter Jeff Stoddard gave up three runs on six hits in four innings and Mike Lembo went 1.1 innings allowing just on earned.
It looked like it may be a high scoring affair when the two teams combined for three runs in the first inning. Ted Shaw's lead off double led to the first run of the afternoon when Victor Sorrento drove him in with a two-out single. Fairfield would quickly erase that deficit though, coming back to take a lead of its own by scoring two. The first three hitters all reached, with Drew Arciuolo walking and Radziewicz and Sapietro knocking back-to-back singles, the latter of which brought in Arciuolo. A line drive double play momentarily halted the momentum, but Crispino came through with a two-out RBI single to make the score 2-1.
SHU got its first two batters on in the second but could not take advantage and Fairfield would add on to the lead in the third when Brendan Tracy followed back-to-back hits by Radziewicz and Salpietro with an RBI single. The damage could have been worse if not for yet another double play, which stranded Salpietro at third.
Like Fairfield in the third, Sacred Heart got three consecutive hits in the fourth, as Dan Schock began the frame with a single before coming around to make it a one-run game on Medina's RBI double. Medina was not able to advance to second on PJ DeFilippo's single to center, leading to the decision to have Jake Friar move the two up to base each, which he did successfully. Anthony Capozziello would then walk to load the bases for Shaw, who tied the game with a sacrifice fly. SHU was not done there though, as Jayson Sullivan gave the Pioneers their second lead of the game with a two-out single.
The two bullpens would combine to give up just one run through the next five and a half innings to send the game to extras, the lone score coming when Tim Zeng worked a bases loaded walk with one out in the bottom of the sixth to tie things up. Lonardelli would enter the game and keep the score tied thanks to an inning ending double play ball.
Both teams would load the bases in the seventh as well, with a Zack Short base on balls sandwiched by Keith Klebart and Sorrento singles in the top half, but Horn escaped damage in his lone inning of relief with a strike out and pop up. Lonardelli then worked out of a second bases juiced situation, this time with two outs on a pop up.
Fairfield threatened yet again in the eight when Gethings led off with a single, was sacrificed to second, and reached third on a wild pitch. Yet again the Stags could not capitalize, as this time it was LaRose inducing back-to-back groundouts.
Sacred Heart had the lead off man reach in both the ninth and tenth, only to come away empty-handed both times. Klebart walked to lead off the ninth and was sacrificed to second by Shaw, but after a strike out an intentional walk, Howell came on to record the final out on a ground out. The Pioneers then had a runner reach third in the tenth, with Medina beginning the frame with a single, moving up to second on a balk, and then to third on Perry's sacrifice. This looked to have finally broke the deadlock when Friar sent a fly ball to center, but Arciuolo had a different idea and would throw out Medina at home.
Fairfield looked to capitalize on that when Troy Scocca sent a first pitch down the right field line for a one-out double in the bottom half and pinch hitter Tyler Gambardella came on to work a base on balls. Again it was Sacred Heart using the double play ball, with this time Perry forcing the batter to bounce into a 4-3 inning ender. Perry would then have to strand the bases loaded in the 11th after Conti led off with a single. Although the next two outs were recorded on a sacrifice and strike out, the decision to intentional walk the following hitter almost backfired when yet another base on balls followed. The sophomore did not let that phase him though, registering a second punch out in the frame to send the game to the 12th.
