BENNINGTON, Vt. – A four-run top of the seventh inning put the visiting Mitchell College Mariners ahead over Southern Vermont College Sunday afternoon in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) baseball action at Bill Epstein Field, leading them to the 9-5 win to complete the series sweep.
Mariner freshman catcher Nova Crespo (New London, Conn.) pulled a 3-2 pitch over the right-center fence for a two-run homer to cap the inning for the visitors as they improved to 21-11-1 on the season, finishing the NECC schedule with a 15-3 mark. The Mountaineers end the season 5-13 in the conference, 11-24 overall.
Southern Vermont was able to get up early-on with four runs in the bottom of the second, loading the bases with no outs. Sophomore shortstop Chris Nicastro (Cranford, N.J.) took advantage and poked one out to right to plate the first Mountaineer run. Sophomore outfielder Roland Hernandez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) would rip a single down the left field line to bring across two more, and Nicastro then was able to score from third on an errant throw down by Crespo.
The Mariners worked their way back over the next two frames, first with three-straight walks to start the top of the third. Following a strikeout, another walk to sophomore third baseman Raphael Garcia (New Britain, Conn.) would score freshman right fielder Neftali Arroyo (New Haven, Conn.) to make it 4-1.
Mitchell came back with three more in the fourth, started by a Crespo groundout to first that allowed sophomore first baseman Evan Peck (Shelton, Conn.) to motor around from second to score. An ensuing double to right-center off the bat of freshman second baseman Eddie Lorah (East Lyme, Conn.) would bring in the second, and a Mountaineer infield miscue then allowed Lorah to come in to tie it at 4-4.
Southern Vermont would reclaim the lead in the bottom of the fifth when sophomore defensive replacement AJ Watt (Sharon, Conn.) slapped one between the Mitchell first and second basemen, scoring senior first baseman Corey Armstrong (Bennington, Vt.).
The top of the seventh saw the Mariners tack up the eventual game-winning runs, all four being scored with two outs. Junior shortstop Marc Dorsi (West Haven, Conn.) stole second and booted the one-hop throw into the outfield, allowing him to get up and advance to third. He then scored on a double down the left field line by sophomore left fielder Drew Doyle (Mystic, Conn.) to make things even at 5-5. Doyle promptly scored on another Mountaineer error for the go-ahead run, and the Crespo jack then put Mitchell up 8-5.
MC added a sliver of insurance in the eighth when Dorsi turned a walk into a tally, swiping second and third and then being driven in on a sacrifice fly to left by junior designated hitter Kenneth Olszewski (Canterbury, Conn.). The Mitchell bullpen was able to keep the Mountaineers from coming back while solidifying the 9-5 win.
Mariner sophomore right-handed reliever Nik Kindervater (Kingston, N.Y.) picked up the win (1-1), throwing three scoreless innings after coming in for the sixth, seventh and eighth. He gave up no hits while walking four and striking out two Mountaineer hitters. SVC senior Joel DeFedele (North Kingstown, R.I.) suffered the loss (0-3) with the three runs (one earned) allowed in 2.2 innings of work out of the pen. He gave up just three hits and one walk in the appearance.
Hernandez was 1-3 with the two RBIs for Southern Vermont, and Nicastro went 1-2 with a run batted in and another scored.
Crespo finished 2-3 with three runs batted in and one scored while Lorah was 2-3 with one run scored and another knocked in.
Mitchell looks to its Wednesday non-conference tilt against Coast Guard Academy at 7 p.m. at Dodd Stadium in Norwich, Conn. in preparation for the NECC postseason. The second-seeded Mariners will play No. 3 Elms College at Daniel Webster College Friday afternoon, first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m.