BENNINGTON, Vt. — Southern Vermont College was clipped 4-3 by the visiting Elms College Blazers Sunday afternoon at Bill Epstein Field as the Mountaineers dropped the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) baseball series finale to EC.
Elms started strongly with three runs in the top of the first, but Southern Vermont was able to come back to tie it with two in the home half and another lone run in the second. EC then pulled back in front with a single tally in the fourth, and neither side would cross the plate the rest of the way at the Blazers held off the Mountaineers to finish off the series sweep.
Before the action started, SVC celebrated its Senior Day as the team honored its two departing members in captain RJ Pingitore (Perth, N.Y.) and righty reliever Chris Bradt (Ballston Spa, N.Y.).
SVC falls to 18-17 on the year and 10-7 in league action with the loss. The Mountaineers conclude their NECC regular season with their next game, playing Newbury College Tuesday night at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Mass. with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m.
Pingitore went 2-for-4 in his final game at The Bill while freshman Zack Stacey (Saratoga, N.Y.) and junior designated hitter Anthony Mercuri (Ridge, N.Y.) were both 1-for-4 with a run scored. Sophomore third baseman Rob Spatafore (Mahopac, N.Y.) turned in a 1-for-3 showing at the plate with a run scored in the effort.
Mountaineer junior righty Dylan Angelo (Ft. Johnson, N.Y.) suffered the loss (6-2) from the mound, giving up three earned runs in five innings of work while striking out three. Bradt came on to make one final appearance at Bill Epstein Field, tossing a perfect 1.1 innings as he retired each of the four Blazer batters that he faced.
After Elms put up its three-run top of the first, SVC fought back to answer with one of its own. Stacey ripped the second pitch he saw to the left field corner for a lead-off double, and he would then score from third on a line-drive single slapped out into left.
The Mountaineers would tie the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the second, but not without some controversy. After Mercuri started the frame with a single up the middle, Spatafore knocked the ball down towards the right field corner and into the SVC bullpen. After he motored around to third for what appeared to be a run-scoring triple, the Blazer head coach came out to argue the play. A timely deliberation between the umpires ended with them ruling that the ball had gone under the bench in the pen and was thus a ground-rule double.
Spatafore was sent to second while Mercuri was forced back to third, but it all evened out as the Elms pitcher committed a run-scoring balk during the next at bat. SVC sophomore right fielder Niko D'Agnese (Mahopac, N.Y.) then sent an RBI single to short, bringing Spatafore home to tie the game.
EC went back on top with a single run in the fourth, a sacrifice fly to right bringing home what proved to be the game-winning score. 14 consecutive Mountaineers were retired at the plate before Pingitore ripped a two-out single to left center in the bottom of the eighth, but he would be erased on the next at bat with a grounder down to short. Spatafore wore a pitch in the ninth to get aboard, only to have his pinch runner get stranded there as the Blazers wrapped up the victory.