IMMACULATA, Pa. - The Immaculata baseball team secured the first Atlantic East Conference title in program history on Friday, taking down Marymount in a marathon game 5-1. The Macs battled mother nature to get the game in, coming out on top in the end while earning the conference championship. Ryan Crowell earned the win for the Macs, pitching seven innings of one-run baseball.
Frank Margiotta reached base on a leadoff error in the bottom of the first, giving the Macs an early baserunner. A sacrifice bunt from Joey Sacco moved Margiotta to second before Joey Wright reached base on a walk. Josh Crowding then connected on a single into left field, scoring Margiotta to give the Macs the 1-0 lead. Steven Theisen then followed up with a hard-hit ball to second base, causing an error to score Wright from second, advancing Crowding to third. Ryan Struble continued the rally for the Macs with a double down the left field line to score Crowding, giving the Macs a 3-0 lead.
Following two separate delays due to inclement weather, the Macs looked to increase their lead in the bottom of the fourth. Jason Smiley legged out an infield single, moving to second on a sacrifice bunt. Smiley then scored on an RBI-single from Margiotta into left filed, increasing the Macs' lead to 4-0. Margiotta later scored on a fielder's choice from Joey Wright to give the Macs a 5-0 lead.
A leadoff home run in the top of the seventh got the Saints on the board as the score stood 5-1 after the top of the seventh.
Starting pitcher Ryan Crowell hurled seven innings of one-run baseball, with his only blemish being a solo home run in the top of the seventh. Crowell allowed seven hits, striking out five batters while walking zero batters.
Stephen DiBatista and Trevor Wagner kept the Saints scoreless in the final two frames. With two outs in the top of the ninth, senior Frank Margiotta, whose superb defensive abilities have been on display for the entirety of the tournament, sealed the deal for the Mighty Macs, making the final catch as the Macs secured the program's first conference championship title 5-1 over the Saints.
Crowell earned the win as the Immaculata pitching core dominated the conference tournament. Crowell, DiBatista, Wagner, Mason Keller, and Jason Hughes combined to allow only two runs over 27 innings on the tournament. Crowell, Keller, and Hughes pitched 22.1 of those innings for the Macs, going deep into games as the starting pitcher while keeping the opposing offenses off-balance. Hughes, who pitched a complete game against Marymount on Wednesday, was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player.
The Macs' pitching was backed by phenomenal defensive work throughout the tournament as the Mighty Macs did not record a single error over the three-game span. Margiotta epitomizes the Macs' defensive excellence on the tournament, having made diving plays time and again in center field.
Offensively, the Macs executed on defensive miscues by the Saints, and were led by Margiotta, who went 2-for-5, scoring two runs and one RBI overall. Josh Crowding also aided the Macs offensively, going 1-for-4 with one run scored and one RBI.
Senior Hunter Hall was also named the recipient of the 2022 Atlantic East baseball Elite 20 Award. The Elite 20 Award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA competing at the finals site of each of the Atlantic East's 20 tam championships. Hall, an Accounting major, earned the honor with a 3.93 GPA.
With the the victory, the Mighty Macs earn both the Atlantic East Championship title and an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III tournament. The Macs now await the NCAA Division III selection show, which will take place on Monday, May 16th, at 12:00 P.M. A watch party will take place in the Alumnae Hall Gymnasium for all students, faculty, and staff.