Fri 30 at Fairleigh Dickinson @ Teaneck, NJ L, 8-6
Sat 31 at Fairleigh Dickinson @ Teaneck, NJ DH – Game 1 L, 2-0
Sat 31 at Fairleigh Dickinson @ Teaneck, NJ DH – Game 2 W, 6-1
Sun 1 at Fairleigh Dickinson @ Teaneck, NJ L, 6-3
Tue 3 vs. Yale @ Bridgeport, CT W, 6-3
Thu 5 at Kansas St. @ Manhattan, KS L, 9-7
Fri 6 at Kansas St. @ Manhattan, KS L, 6-1
Sat 7 at Kansas St. @ Manhattan, KS L, 7-0
Tue 10 at Manhattan @ Riverdale, NY L, 11-5
Fri 13 at Bryant @ Smithfield, RI L, 1-0
Sat 14 at Bryant @ Smithfield, RI DH – Game 1 L, 3-2
Sat 14 at Bryant @ Smithfield, RI DH – Game 2 L, 10-4
Sun 15 at Bryant @ Smithfield, RI W, 5-2
The Sacred Heart University baseball team returned to conference play with a four-game road set against Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, N.J.
The Pioneers would drop the first game, 8-6, when the bullpen imploded in the seventh inning; surrendering seven runs on seven hits and ruining junior Troy Scribner’s (2-5) start of six shutout innings.
Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson (15-17-1, 10-6 NEC) would split the next day’s doubleheader.
Fairleigh Dickinson took game one, 2-0, as Joe Borelli, their freshman starter, hurled a complete game three-hit shutout to outduel Pioneer sophomore starter Nick Leiningen (2-4). Leiningen was stingy himself, only allowing five hits and two walks in the complete game loss.
However, behind a complete game two-hitter from sophomore starter Robbie Maguire (1-2), Sacred Heart would win game two, 6-1. Freshman designated hitter Matt Charmello (.308 batting average) added two hits and the go-ahead RBI.
Sophomore Robbie Maguire is now in the win column. photo courtesy of sacred heart university athletics
April Fools’ Day was no laughing matter for the Pioneers, as they dropped the series finale, 6-3.
Down 3-0 in the sixth, Sacred Heart junior shortstop John Murphy (team-leading .333 AVG) tied the game with a three-run jack to right. But, in the eighth, Pioneer junior reliever John Hermanson (1-4) coughed up three runs for the loss, sending his club back to Fairfield with a 1-3 series record.
Sacred Heart returned to Harbor Yard on April 3 for an in-state tune-up with Yale University (8-26-1, 2-10 Ivy League).
Junior starter Dave Boisture (1-0) earned the win for the Pioneers with three shutout innings. Boisture, the everyday right fielder, also added a RBI single, two walks, and a run scored.
Junior Dave Boisture has yet to yield a run in 4 innings on the hill. photo courtesy of orange and white
Sacred Heart took to the road two days later, as they traveled to Manhattan, Kan. for a nonconference matchup with Kansas State University (17-18, 3-9 Big 12 Conference).
The Pioneers fell, 9-7, in game one of the three-game set as Leiningen was hammered for seven first inning runs.
Sacred Heart fought back in the seventh when senior second baseman Hunter Phillips (.283) hit a RBI triple and scored on a sac fly to tie the game at 7. But, Kansas State got two more off Leiningen in the bottom half and held the rest of the way.
The Pioneers dropped game two, 6-1. Scribner threw scoreless ball through the first four innings, but gave up two in the fifth and three in the sixth for the loss. Sophomore catcher Dan Perez (team-leading 17 RBI) chipped in two hits and a walk for Sacred Heart.
The Pioneers were shutout 7-0 in the series finale, as sophomore starter Kody Kerski (2-4) gave up five and absorbed the loss.
On April 10, Sacred Heart returned to the northeast to battle Manhattan College (15-19, 8-4 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) in Riverdale, N.Y.
Senior Chris Dionisio made his first start of the season and senior James Ineson (0-1) suffered the loss, as all four Pioneer pitchers used gave up multiple runs in the 11-5 defeat.
Senior Hunter Phillips made sure the Pioneers did't leave Rhode Island empty handed. photo courtesy of sacred heart university athletics
It was back into NEC play on Friday when Sacred Heart made the trip to Smithfield, R.I. to lock horns with Bryant University in a four-game weekend series.
In the series opener, Leiningen tossed his fourth complete game of the year, allowing just one run on five hits and no walks. Unfortunately for the Pioneers, he was outgunned by Bryant (20-15, 13-3 NEC) junior starter Peter Kelich, who threw a complete game shutout for the 1-0 victory.
On Saturday, the Pioneers came up short on both ends of a doubleheader.
Sacred Heart jumped out to a 2-0 lead in game one, but Scribner failed to hold it, letting Bryant push late runs across for a 3-2 victory.
In game two, the Bryant bats exploded and the arms pitched well enough to help them cruise to a 10-4 win.
Phillips erased the prospect of an impending sweep on Sunday with a dramatic ninth inning RBI single to break a 2-2 tie. The Pioneers tacked on two more and Kerski shut the door in the bottom half for a complete game victory.
The win over Bryant, who is atop the NEC standings, evens Sacred Heart’s conference record exactly midway through their grueling NEC schedule. It also puts them in sixth place in the nine-team NEC.
| School | NEC | Pct. | Overall | Pct. | Streak | Home | Away | Neutral | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Bryant | 13-3 | .812 | 20-15 | .571 | L1 | 9-3 | 9-11 | 2-1 |
| 2. | Monmouth | 11-5 | .688 | 22-14 | .611 | W1 | 10-2 | 9-12 | 3-0 |
| 3. | Fairleigh Dickinson | 10-6-0 | .625 | 15-17-1 | .470 | L3 | 9-4-1 | 5-12-0 | 1-1-0 |
| 4. | Central Conn. St. | 11-9 | .550 | 18-16 | .529 | L1 | 11-4 | 7-12 | 0-0 |
| Wagner | 11-9 | .550 | 15-23 | .395 | W1 | 8-5 | 7-18 | 0-0 | |
| 6. | Sacred Heart | 8-8 | .500 | 11-23 | .324 | W1 | 7-3 | 3-14 | 1-6 |
| 7. | LIU Brooklyn | 6-10 | .375 | 14-23 | .378 | L1 | 2-4 | 6-12 | 6-7 |
| 8. | Mount St. Mary’s | 5-15 | .250 | 12-27 | .308 | W1 | 5-12 | 6-12 | 1-3 |
| Quinnipiac | 5-15 | .250 | 6-27 | .182 | L1 | 4-8 | 2-19 | 0-0 |
On Deck: Sacred Heart stays in the CT as they travel to Yale Field in West Haven to take on Yale tomorrow at 3:30pm. The Pioneers return to NEC action with a four-game set in Brooklyn, NY against LIU this weekend.
