Boston, MA: The #5 Ramapo College baseball team defeated #4 Western New England University 19-15 to advance in the NCAA Harwich, MA Regional. The Roadrunners improve to 33-13 while the Golden Bears now stand at 31-14 on the year.
Ramapo will play in game seven tomorrow afternoon at 4:30pm against the winner of #1 UMASS Boston and #8 Penn State Berks. WNE moves on to an elimination game tomorrow at 9:30am against the loser of #1 UMASS Boston and #8 Penn State Berks.
Today's opening round game was moved to Monan Park on the campus of UMASS Boston, the field is a replica of the Boston Red Sox's Fenway Park, including the Green Monster in left field.
The Golden Bears got on the board in the bottom of the first inning with five unearned runs aided by two Ramapo errors to take a quick 5-0 lead.
Ramapo would come back with seven runs in the top of the second inning. Ryan MacNaughton cracked his second home run of the season over the 27-foot left field fence, a two-run shot that also plated Vincenzo Sita who reached on a ground-rule double to lead off the inning. With no outs, Liam Duffy doubled and Matt Chemis beat out an infield single to third base to put runners on the corners before Austin Unglaub laced a single to left field to drive home Duffy to come within two 5-3. Connor Walsh plated Chemis with an RBI fielder's choice 5-4 before Bobby Shannon connected on the Roadrunner's second home run of the inning. Shannon belted a three-run home run over the left field wall to give Ramapo a 7-5 lead.
Ramapo added one run in the top of the third to extend the lead 8-5. Anthony Kuzmenko lifted a sac fly to left-center field allowing Duffy to score. Sita would connect on the third Ramapo home run of the game, a two-run shot over the left field fence, which allowed Walsh to score for a 10-5 lead.
In the bottom of the fourth, WNE came within one run 10-9 as they scored four runs. The bases were loaded with two outs when Brian Valeriano hit a two-run double off the left field wall before the Roadrunners recorded the final out at the plate. Kuzmenko fielded the ball off the wall in left field hit the cut in Sita who fired home to Duffy who was waiting to apply the tag on Aaron Rios who tried to score from first base.
In the top of the sixth inning Shannon led off with a double down the left field line before Sita drove a single into left field to put runners on the corners with no outs. Ryan MacNaughton drove a double to left field plating Shannon for a 11-9 lead. Sita then scored on a wild pitch 12-9. Unglaub would drive home MacNaughton with a hard hit single up the middle for a 13-9 score.
WNE added one run in the bottom of the seventh with a sac fly from Erik Lacaire before Ramapo added five runs in the top of the eighth inning to take a 18-10 lead. Joe Maugeri drove home two runs with a single before Walsh plated Maugeri with an RBI single to right field.
In the bottom half of the eighth, WNE added five runs on two hits before Ramapo relief pitcher Kevin Foulds got out of a bases loaded no-out jam to end the threat and preserve the 18-15 lead. Ramapo added one run in the top of the ninth when Chemis walked, moved up two bases on back-to-back ground outs and later scored on a wild pitch 19-15.
Foulds would earn his 10th save of the season, which also matches the single season and career records at Ramapo. Foulds struck out four, walked one and did not give up a hit while he faced eight batters in the final two innings of action.
Kyle Haag (2-3) earned the win in relief. He surrendered five hits and one run while he recorded two strikeouts and no walks. He started the bottom of the fifth inning and worked three innings holding a 10-9 lead in the fifth inning while Ramapo added three in the sixth inning for a 13-9 lead.