PATCHOGUE, N.Y. – Tied at 5-5 after five innings, William Paterson (13-4) scored three late runs to earn its seventh baseball win in the last nine games, 8-6 at St. Joseph's-Long Island (8-7), March 27. For assistant coach Bob Lauterhahn, this marks the 1,000th victory he has been a part of during his 39th season with the program.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Sophomore center fielder Steven DiGirolamo opened the game with a walk, stole second and third, then scored on a Steve Yelin groundout for a 1-0 edge.
- The Golden Eagles leveled the scored during the home half of the first inning, but WP took a 3-1 lead in the third when sophomore shortstop Greg Cuevas hit a leadoff single through the right side, DiGirolamo laced an RBI-triple to center and junior second baseman Matt Ferrara lifted a sacrifice fly to center field.
- Sophomore left fielder Frankie Deane and Cuevas added run-scoring base hits for a 5-1 advantage during the top of the fifth inning.
- St. Joseph's-Long Island used three singles, a double, walk, wild pitch and passed ball to touch home four times and tie the game at 5-5 in the fifth.
- The Pioneers re-took the lead in the seventh with a Yelin bases-loaded fielder's choice, then expanded it to 8-5 in the ninth when DiGirolamo tripled in Cuevas and then scored himself after a wild pitch.
- The Golden Eagles got one run back with a bases-loaded wild pitch during the bottom of the ninth frame, but a groundout ended the game with the tying run on second.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- DiGirolamo went 3-for-4 with two triples, a pair of RBI and three runs scored, while Cuevas was 3-for-4 while scoring twice and driving in a run.
- Deane finished 2-for-4 at the plate while recording an RBI and run scored.
- Freshman Matt Lawler improved to 2-0 with 3.1 shutout innings of relief, scattering two hits and a walk while striking out two.
- Senior Eric Rosenberg picked up his second save of the season, giving up one run on two hits and a walk, striking out a pair during the final 1.0 inning.
- The Pioneers posted a 755-333-10 record during assistant coach Bob Lauterhahn's 27 seasons with Head Coach Jeff Albies, and a 245-196-5 mark during his 12th season with Head Coach Mike Lauterhahn (1000-529-15). During his time at WP, the Pioneers have captured two NCAA Division III national championships (1992, 1996), have made seven World Series appearances (1982, 1985, 1988, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1999), have earned 16 NCAA Tournament berths (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999) and have captured 11 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Tournament titles (1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997). Lauterhahn was inducted into the WP Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.
UP NEXT:
- William Paterson starts conference play Saturday, March 30, with a doubleheader against Rutgers-Camden at 11:30 a.m. at Jeff Albies Field.
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