MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME BASEBALL

2015 ECAC Division III New England Semifinals

Saturday, May 9, 2015

Brother Reynolds Field, Newport, R.I.

FINAL:              SALVE REGINA 4, MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 3

NEWPORT, R.I. --  Freshman David Neil (Randolph, Mass.) rapped out three hits and plated the deciding run as part of a fifth-inning rally to lead second-seeded Salve Regina to a 4-3 victory over third-seeded Massachusetts Maritime in semifinal round play of the 2015 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Baseball Championships Saturday afternoon at Brother Reynolds Field.

The host Seahawks, who improve to 25-16 overall with the triumph, will take on top-seeded Framingham State (27-18) in Sunday’s title game at Noon at Brother Reynolds Field, as the Rams used a four-run eighth inning outburst to post a 4-1 victory over fourth-seeded Western New England (19-19) in Saturday’s other semifinal match-up.  The visiting Buccaneers finish the season at 17-13 overall with the setback, as the game proved to be the final career contest for retiring Head Coach Bob Corradi.

“We certainly had our chances today, and it’s frustrating that we didn’t capitalize on all of them, but we played hard until the last out,” Corradi said following the game.  “We used 18 different players in the lineup, and everyone was ready to go.  It speaks to the resiliency of this team and to their attitude.  I am so proud of each and every one of them, especially our seniors.  No one really gave us a shot when the season started, but they ended the year as MASCAC champions.”

Massachusetts Maritime grabbed a 1-0 lead in its first at-bat on junior Everett Walsh’s (Marstons Mills, Mass.) RBI single, but Salve Regina evened matters in the third when freshman John Militano (Miller Place, N.Y.) singled, stole second, advanced to third on a throwing error and scored on sophomore Alex Kukich’s (Old Brookville, N.Y.) groundout.  The Seahawks grabbed a 2-1 cushion in the fourth when Neil singled and scored on a two-out RBI single off the bat of freshman Christian Vargas (Melbourne, Fla.), but the Buccaneers got that run back on the first pitch of the top of the fifth to sophomore Terrence Mudie (Barnstable, Mass.), who hit his first career homer down the left field line to even matters again.

Kukich started Salve Regina’s deciding rally in the bottom of the frame on a two-out single, as he stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch.  Freshman Alex Perry (North Attleboro, Mass.) then drew a walk on a 3-2 pitch that bounced in the dirt and allowed Kukich to score the go-ahead run, and after a single by senior Joe Haley (North Kingstown, R.I.), Neil delivered an RBI single that plated Perry with the eventual winning run for the hosts.  Massachusetts Maritime loaded the bases in the eighth with two outs but was unable to score, and the Buccaneers again filled the bases in the ninth after a single by senior Greg Downs (Marshfield, Mass.) was followed by walks issued to Walsh and freshman William Keane (Braintree, Mass.).  Downs scored on a fielding error to slice the visitors’ deficit to one, but the Seahawks were able to induce a game-ending double play and advance to Sunday’s championship game.

Neil accounted for a third of Salve Regina’s nine hits on the day, as senior Kyle Pheland (North Scituate, R.I.) allowed seven hits and overcame four walks over six innings of work to pick up the win and improve to 5-2 on the season.  Freshman Tommy Seaver (Rocky Hill, Conn.) also walked four and allowed three hits but was able to escape in allowing an unearned run and fanning a pair to record his first collegiate save for the Seahawks over the final three frames.

Mudie and Walsh each had two hits to pace a 10-hit attack in the setback for Massachusetts Maritime, which left a total of 14 runners on base on the afternoon.  Junior Kyle Kennedy (Woodbury, Conn.) allowed eight hits and three earned runs while striking out one over the first five innings for the Buccaneers, who received three scoreless relief frames and three strikeouts from senior Zac Cooney (East Bridgewater, Mass.).

Corradi concludes his 43-year tenure at Massachusetts Maritime with 579 career victories and a pair of Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference championships, including this year’s regular season title that was the Buccaneers’ first league crown in 33 years (after being picked to finish fifth in the pre-season coaches poll).  Today’s game, the 1,216^th of Corradi’s career, marked the eighth ECAC tournament appearance and the program’s ninth overall postseason appearance since 1973 when Corradi began his tenure at the Academy.