UNION, N.J. (5/1/15) – Kean University and Ramapo College hooked up for an epic duel in the second round of the NJAC Tournament on Friday. Kean prevailed 5-4 and left the bases loaded with Roadrunners in the bottom of the ninth.
Sal Taormina finished with three RBI's for Kean. Vinny Zanfordino picked up the win in relief after starter Emilo Calderon pitched six plus effective innings. Chris Amato (pictured left) earned a heart-pumping save by blowing away the second batter he faced on a 3-2 fastball with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth to end the game.
The Cougars will take on The College of New Jersey on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. as the two undefeated teams left in the tournament.
With Kean batting first in Friday's game, Tyler Heisch started a first-inning rally for the Cougars with a bunt single down the thirdbase line. Ryan Kelley had a productive groundout to move Heisch to scoring position and with two outs Taormina looped an RBI single into right field to give Kean an early 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the second inning, Ramapo left fielder Rafael Dela Cruz doubled down the thirdbase line with two outs. The Roadrunners would even the score with another double to the rightfield gap by Ryan Rinsky, but Heisch would end the rally with a nice catch on a looping ball down the left field line.
Ramapo was looking to add runs in the bottom of the third, but an unconventional pop-up bunt double-play crushed the Roadrunners' hopes in the frame. Tom McGuckin ended the double play with a great scoop at first base.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Calderon started to run into some trouble. The Cougars intentionally walked Joe Venturino to load the bases and set up a force play, but an error by Kean allowed one run in. Kelley prevented further damage in the inning with a diving catch in right field leaving the bases loaded.
Kean didn't wait too long to answer back offensively. A single and throwing error allowed Kelley to scamper all the way to third after his at-bat. Kean tied the score with a hard-hit RBI groundout to first by Taormina.
Going into the seventh inning, both pitchers had similar lines: they had allowed two runs, six hits, and one error each.
In the seventh, Kean had a runner on second with two outs. On a chopper to first base, Matt Meleo hustled to beat out the pitcher to first. An alert Ryan Reitmeyer - who was on second base - had the green light, never stopping running, rounded third and slid in to beat the throw home as the Cougars took a 3-2 lead.
In the bottom of the frame, Kean allowed the bases to be loaded. Kelley caught a foul fly ball but Ramapo tagged and scored the tying run. On the very next pitch, Amato, who was the Cougar shortstop for the first 8 and 2/3 innings, leaped and caught a hard hit line drive leaving the bases loaded again.
In the eighth inning, Kean loaded the bases with two outs. Ramapo pitcher Tom Portesy, who suffered the tough-luck loss after a valiant 147-pitch effort, earned a strike out to wiggle out of the jam.
Tension built in the top of the ninth inning. Amato raced down the first base line after he grounded to the second baseman and beat the play for a single. He then stole second. Meleo coupled that with a single to right field and both advanced on a throwing error, putting runners on second and third. Kean played small ball and got the runners in on a sacrifice fly by Kelley and an RBI groundout by Taormina and took a 5-3 lead to the bottom of the ninth.
Down to their last licks, Ramapo loaded the bases on a hit batsmen, walk and a single in the inning, sandwiched around an out. A sacrifice fly would close the gap to 5-4 as Kean then summoned Amato to the mound. With first base open, another hit batsmen, the 81st of the year for the program, loaded the bases once again. Pinch-hitter Scott Paulus worked a 3-2 count before Amato fired a strike by the Ramapo batter to end the rally, the inning and the game and earn the big-time one-out save.
Meleo, Taormina and Matt Krupa all had two hits for the Cougars, who are now 30-10 on the year. Ramapo is still alive in the Tournament and fell to 26-13.