WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The Saint Anselm College baseball team began Northeast-10 Conference play on Friday afternoon by splitting a doubleheader at the University of New Haven. With the win in the first game, the Hawks defeated the Chargers for the first time since 2011.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm will face Southern Connecticut State University on the road in a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 26th.
Game 1 Score: Saint Anselm 5, New Haven 4 (Final/9innings)
Win: W. Hunter (2-1)
Loss: J. Vohra (0-1)
Save: M. Gibbons (3)
Records: Saint Anselm 7-10 (1-0 NE10); New Haven 9-10 (1-1 NE10)
Location: West Haven, Conn. (Frank Vieira Field)
Date: Friday, March 22, 2024
Attendance: 77
HOW IT HAPPENED (Game 1):
- After a scoreless top of the first for Saint Anselm, New Haven took an early lead in the bottom half of the inning. The Chargers put runners on the corners with two outs and Shaun Callahan singled to left to put his team ahead, 1-0.
- The Hawks remained without a run for the first five innings of the game, but senior starting pitcher Dallas Vaughan (Haverhill, Mass.) was solid on the mound and helped keep his team down by just one run. Vaughan gave up two hits in both the third and fourth innings, but got out of trouble on both occasions.
- In the top of the fifth, junior Daniel Scolaro (Quincy, Mass.) doubled to left and sophomore Shea Howrigan (Enosburg Falls, Vt.) walked to put runners on first and second with two outs for Saint Anselm, but they stranded both on the basepaths.
- Vaughan then tossed a one-two-three bottom of the fifth and in the sixth, the Hawks finally got on the board. With two outs in the inning, senior Nolan Elmore (Brentwood, N.H.) started a rally with a single. Freshman Austin Brune (Billerica, Mass.) then walked, allowing freshman Declan Ryan (Hooksett, N.H.) to drive in Elmore with a single through the left side that tied the score at 1-1.
- The next batter was Scolaro, who came up with a clutch two-out single to bring home Brune and put Saint Anselm ahead, 2-1.
- That lead was short-lived, though, as New Haven knotted things up in the bottom of the sixth. Joseph Frazzetta ripped an RBI single for the Chargers to make it 2-2.
- The Hawks then regained their lead courtesy of a huge top of the eighth. Senior Zack Clough (Newbury, Mass.) led off the inning with a walk followed by a steal of second base. Elmore was next up and he scored Clough with a single to left that made it 3-2, Saint Anselm.
- After a passed ball thrown by New Haven, Saint Anselm advanced their runners to second and third with nobody out. Two Hawks then struck out, but freshman Brendan Gonzalez (Mechanicville, N.Y.) kept the inning alive with his first career hit, an RBI single through the left side that made it 4-2.
- Howrigan provided the Hawks with a crucial insurance run after singling to right with the next at bat to bring home Brune and put Saint Anselm in front by three runs.
- Junior pitcher Marko Gibbons (Delmar N.Y.) came on to start the eighth inning for the Hawks. Gibbons collected three quick outs after allowing just one walk. He also stayed in to close out the game in the bottom of the ninth inning, but after getting two outs, New Haven got back into the game with an RBI single followed by an RBI triple by Callahan that made it 5-4.
- Callahan was caught stealing home for the final out of the game and the Hawks held on for the win, their first over the Chargers in 13 years.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm had five runs on eight hits and left nine runners stranded. New Haven had four runs on 10 hits and left 10 runners stranded. Neither team committed an error in a clean defensive game.
- At the plate, Elmore went 2-4 for Saint Anselm with an RBI and two runs scored. Brune scored two runs for the Hawks, while Scolaro also went 2-4 with a double and an RBI. Gonzalez, Howrigan, and Ryan each had one hit and one RBI in the win. It was Gonzalez' first hit and RBI in his collegiate career.
- Vaughan went 5.1 innings and allowed two earned runs and seven hits while striking out a pair. Senior Will Hunter (Middleton, Mass.) came on in middle relief and threw 1.2 innings, giving up just one hit and striking out three to earn the win. Gibbons closed things out by pitching the final two innings where he gave up two walks, two hits, and two earned runs while striking out a batter.
Game 2 Score: Saint Anselm 2, New Haven 6 (Final/7 innings)
Win: M. Gatti (1-2)
Loss: M. Michel (1-2)
Records: Saint Anselm 7-11 (1-1 NE10); New Haven 10-10 (2-1 NE10)
Location: West Haven, Conn. (Frank Vieira Field)
Date: Friday, March 22, 2024
Attendance: 78
HOW IT HAPPENED (Game 2):
- After Saint Anselm went down in order in the top of the first, New Haven got the bats going with two walks and a single to quickly load the bases in the bottom half of the inning. With nobody out, Shaun Callahan then singled up the middle which brought two runs to the plate to make it 2-0, Chargers.
- Callahan was then caught stealing and Hawks senior starting pitcher Matthew Michel (Haverhill, Mass.) fanned the next two batters to get out of the jam without further damage.
- Saint Anselm went without a hit in the second and third, allowing New Haven to score another and take a 3-0 advantage. The Chargers again loaded the bases with nobody out, but Michel struck out the next two batters. However, the senior walked in a run before picking up another strikeout to end the inning.
- The Hawks pulled within one thanks to a two-run fourth inning. Freshman Mavrick Bourdeau (Billerica, Mass.) reached on an error and senior Aidan Dow (Lynn, Mass.) walked. With two on and one out, Elmore stepped into the batter's box and delivered a two-run double to left-center to make it a 3-2 game.
- The Chargers got one of those runs back in the fourth. Tyler Wells came through with a two-out RBI double that increased New Haven's lead to 4-2.
- New Haven plated two more runs to pull ahead, 6-2, in the sixth. The Chargers put two runners on and Matt McIntire singled up the middle to bring home his team's fifth run. New Haven then loaded the bases and scored another run on a wild pitch, but freshman pitcher Cooper Hagen (Grand Rapids, Mich.) got the final out to end the inning.
- In the seventh and final inning of the shortened second game, Saint Anselm failed to get a runner on base and fell by a 6-2 final score.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm had two runs on just one hit and left four runners on base. New Haven had six runs on eight hits and left nine aboard. The Chargers had one error in the game while the Hawks did not have any.
- Elmore's two-run double was the only hit and RBIs of the game for Saint Anselm. The Hawks also had just one walk in the contest.
- Michel threw three innings and gave up four hits and three earned runs while walking five and punching out five. Hagen tossed 2.1 innings, also allowing four hits on three earned runs while striking out one. Freshman Quinn MacDonald (Kennebunkport, Maine) came in to collect the final two outs for Saint Anselm and did so after allowing just a walk.
- Since 2003, Saint Anselm is just 4-15 in 19 games against New Haven. However, the Hawks picked up their first win over the Chargers since 2011 on Friday.
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