WASHINGTON, D.C. – The University of Scranton baseball team rallied for one of the biggest wins in the program's nearly 70-year history on Sunday afternoon. On Monday, the Royals will try to do something they've never done – win a Landmark Conference championship and advance to the NCAA Regionals.
Trailing by three with nobody on base and down to their final out, the Royals rallied to force extra innings before defeating Catholic, 6-5 in 11 innings, in an elimination game at Talbot Field. The win puts the Royals into Monday's championship against Moravain, which defeated the Royals earlier in the day, 8-1, in a winners' bracket game. Scranton will need to defeat the Greyhounds twice on Monday to win the title.
Senior shortstop Tim LeCompte (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) had a two-run homer in the ninth and the go-ahead double in the 11th in the rally, but he was far from the only hero on this day.
Trailing 5-2 entering the top of the ninth, the Royals (23-19) quickly found themselves down to their final out when Catholic recorded two outs to start the inning. But junior center fielder Michael Gaeta (Cranford, N.J./Cranford) was hit by a pitch, and senior shortstop LeCompte crushed the next pitch to left field for a two-run homer to cut the deficit to one run.
Freshman outfielder Kyle Hamer (Germantown, Md./St. John's College H.S.) then singled up the middle and was replaced at first by pinch runner Nick Papillo (Germantown, Md./St. John's College H.S.). Senior catcher Michael Amaturo (Rye, N.Y./Rye) then doubled just inside the right-field line and Papillo raced around from first, collided with the Cardinals' catcher, but scored the tying run in a raucous scene at the plate that left Papillo injured and face-down in the dirt. It also capped an a comeback that seemed nearly impossible only moments later.
Catholic recovered to strand Amaturo at second, but could not push a run across in the ninth to win it. Both teams went down without a threat in the 10th before Scranton took the lead in the 11th. Sophomore first baseman Ross Danzig (Clarks Summit, Pa./Abington Heights/Blair Academy, N.J.) led off with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Gaeta. LeCompte pulled a double into the left-field corner to score Danzig with the go-ahead run.
The Cardinals got a lead-off single in the bottom of the 11th, but sophomore righty Jimmy Sawyer (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) made a key play on a sac bunt attempt, gunning down the runner at second, leaving a runner on first and one out. He then picked off a pinch runner for the second out before striking out the final batter as the Royals' bench erupted in celebration.
Sawyer got the win by allowing two runs, one earned, on two hits and two walks while striking out four in four innings. Sophomore righty Matt Calamoneri (Hillsborough, N.J./Hillsborough) started and took a three-hit shutout into the eighth before Catholic got to him for three runs, two earned. He finished allowing five hits and two walks while striking out a career-high nine.
Scranton led 2-0 going into the bottom of the eighth behind a second-inning RBI single from sophomore second baseman Matt Maghini (Madison, Conn./Daniel Hand) and a seven-inning RBI single by freshman outfielder Ray Grapsy (Covington Township, Pa./North Pocono).
Catholic rallied with five runs in the bottom of the eighth, but the lead was short-lived. Scranton's victory was its fifth in five tries against the Cardinals (26-17) this season.
LeCompte finished with three hits, three RBIs and a run scored. Maghini had two hits, an RBI and scored a run, Amaturo and Grapsy each had two hits and an RBI, Danzig had two hits and scored a run and sophomore left fielder Michael Umerich (Clarks Summit, Pa./Abington Heights) had a pair of hits in the win.
The victory was even more impressive considering Scranton was playing immediately following an 8-1 loss to Moravian in a winners' bracket game. The Royals led 1-0 in the first inning, but committed seven errors that led to seven unearned runs for the Greyhounds.
Danzig finished with two hits, Umerich doubled and Gaeta had an RBI in the loss.
The championship begins Monday at 11 a.m. at Talbot Field. A victory by the Royals would force a winner-take-all game at 2:30 p.m.
This is Scranton's third appearance in the Landmark Conference championship in the conference's six-year history. They lost in the championship in both 2008 and 2011, both times falling to Catholic.
--ROYALS--