NEEDHAM, Mass. – Powered by a 3-for-3 effort from junior second baseman
Devyn Vezina and solid pitching from hurler
Anthony Keefe, the UMass Dartmouth baseball team upset #21 Babson College, 7-3 in an elimination game on Saturday in the NCAA Division III Tournament Regionals at Govoni Field.
The Corsairs improve to 25-19-1 and will face the loser of the second game on Saturday between Mitchell College and Salisbury University in a game to be played later today. The Beavers season comes to an end with a 30-13 record.
UMass Dartmouth got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning as sophomore
Brett Baker drilled a single to right field. He advanced to third on an errant pick-off attempt throw by the Babson pitcher, coming home soon after as Vezina singled to left to give the Corsairs the 1-0 advantage.
In the top of the second, the Beavers threatened once again as with an out on the board, senior shortstop Jack Julian singled through the left, followed by a single to right by right fielder Luca Rubin to put runners on the corners. Corsairs hurler
Anthony Keefe got junior left fielder Walter Sadowsky to strikeout swinging for the second out. That brought up senior second baseman Tanner Santos, who sent one flying but it was caught in foul territory on the run by left fielder
Scott Cromack to end the threat and the inning.
Top of the third saw the Beavers tie the game as grad student and center fielder Luke Tanner reached on a hit by pitch. He later stole second and with one out on the board, designated hitter John Nowak singled to short and the runner scored as Corsair shortstop
Cooper Wixon's throw sailed past the reach of junior first baseman
Jake SanAntonio's glove to bring in the run. Wixon redeemed himself on the next play to end the inning, but the teams headed to the bottom of the frame tied at 1-all.
UMass Dartmouth broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth as Vezina singled to short, stealing second as grad student and designated hitter
Joe Muzio reached on an error. Next up was third baseman
Andrew Possi, who reached on a fielders choice as Vezina came home to score.
Right fielder
Chris Kustigian got on soon after on an error and a throw to the plate could not catch Muzio who slid in for the third run. With two outs on the board, Cromack stepped up to the plate, sending a shot up the middle to bring home both Kustigian and Possi for the 5-1 lead after four.
Into the top of the sixth inning, the Beavers got things going with a single to left from junior first baseman Justin Guest. With a runner-on, Julian singled up the middle to bring up left fielder Ryan Hvozdovic who was hit by a pitch to load the bases. But a liner to Cromack off the bat of Santos ends the threat with no runs scored.
The Corsairs led off the seventh inning with a driving single to left. Baker came up to the plate, laying down the bunt, but the Beavers cut down the lead runner to bring up Vezina. With one swing of the bat, the junior sent the ball deep over the right centerfield wall for the 7-1 lead.
Top of the eighth inning saw the Beavers get something going as Keefe came out of the contest in favor of sophomore righty
Aidan O'Donnell. With runners on, Rubin singled to left to load the bases with just one out on the board. A quick single to the pitcher by Hvozdovic saw a runner come across the plate, with O'Donnell unable to get the runner at first to keep the bases loaded.
Next up saw Santos ground out to SanAntonio at first, a run coming across to pull the margin to 7-3 before a fly out from Tanner ended the inning and the threat for the Corsairs heading into their half of the frame.
O'Donnell was outstanding over the final two innings of work, shutting down the Beavers and allowing just two hits with two strikeouts as the Corsairs claimed their first win over Babson since the 2022 season.
In addition to his 3-fo-3 effort at the plate, Vezina added two runs scored with three runs batted in, walking once with a home run. Possi was 1-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, while Cromack went 1-for-4 with two runs batted in. Corsairs hurler Keefe went 7.0 innings, allowing just three runs (two earned) on six hits with four strikeouts and just one walk over 107 pitches thrown.
For Babson, Nowak went 2-for-4, while Julian and Rubin were also 2-for-4 on the day. Hvozdovic went 1-for-3 with an RBI, while Santos also had an RBI. Babson starter Greg Nieskens shouldered the loss, allowing five runs (1 earned) on four hits with three strikeouts. Junior reliever Luke McClintock went 2.1 innings with two runs allowed on four hits, while the Beavers saw two other relievers come into the game.
