STROUDSBURG – For the second straight day, the 15th-ranked and second-seeded East Stroudsburg University baseball team used a rally to earn a come-from-behind victory, as a six-run fourth inning lifted the Warriors to a 6-5 victory over Seton Hill in the second round of the NCAA Atlantic Regional #2 on Friday afternoon at Creekview Park.
The Warriors, who advanced to Saturday's regional final, will now only have to win one game out of a potential two to advance to next week's Atlantic Super Regional. ESU (43-12) will face the winner of No. 3 seed Millersville or No. 6 seed Seton Hill at approximately 2 p.m. tomorrow at Creekview Park.
With two outs in the top of the fourth, junior
Jack Rothenhausler kept the inning alive with a free pass before redshirt sophomore
Parker Frey (double) and redshirt senior
Tim Haverstick (walk) reached to load the bases. Redshirt freshman
Chaise Albus knocked in ESU's first run with a rocket down the first baseline, and fellow classmate
Walker Zampella followed with a bloop single to drive in a pair.
Jeremy Piatkiewicz ultimately played the hero for the Warriors as the senior launched a go-ahead three-run home run to center field, giving ESU a 6-4 lead.
Batting Notables
- The bottom of the lineup provided the offensive for the Warriors as the last four hitters combined to go 6-for-13 with six RBI and four runs scored
- Piatkiewicz finished 1-for-3 with his third home run of the season, three RBI and a run while Zampella went 1-for-3 with a walk, two RBI and a run scored
- Albus (2-4, one RBI) and Haverstick combined four hits and two runs
- Sophomore Shanley Wall (1-5) and Frey (1-4) combined for two hits and one run while Rothenhausler totaled one walk and a run scored
Pitching Notables
- Nick McAuliffe (5-2) shutdown Seton Hill out of the bullpen to earn the victory as the senior tossed 4.0 scoreless innings while striking out four
- For the second straight day, Caden Parker was lights out in the ninth inning as the junior pushed his single-season record for saves to 12 after punching out a pair of Griffins
- Making his 13th start of the year, sophomore Ryan Dewees earned the no-decision after surrendering four runs on seven hits in 3.0 innings
- Carson Renner (one run) appeared out of the bullpen for the second consecutive game as the freshman struck out one in the eighth inning
How it Happened – ESU 6, Seton Hill 5
Seton Hill jumped on the Warriors in the bottom of the first inning with one run on three hits, as Elijah Snider delivered an RBI single up the middle to give the Griffins a 1-0 lead.
The Griffins added one more run in the bottom of the second inning to extend their edge to 2-0, as Owen Henne delivered a sacrifice fly to score Braden Durham, who hit a one-out double before advancing to third on a single from Noah Sweeney.
With two outs in the home half of the third inning, Seton Hill stretched its advantage to 4-0, as Matt Frazetta and Durham each drove in a run with RBI singles.
ESU finally broke through in a big way in the top of the fourth inning, as the Warriors scratched across six runs, all with two outs, on four hits to grab a 6-4 lead over Seton Hill. After ESU loaded the bases with a double and two walks, Albus drove in the Warriors' first run before Zampella followed with a two-RBI single to make the score 4-3. Then, on the third pitch of Piatkiewicz's at-bat, the senior belted a three-run home run to center field to put ESU ahead for the first time.
Seton Hill drew within one run at 6-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, as Frazetta doubled home Mandler, who led off the frame with a walk to reach base.
Up Next
ESU awaits the winner of No. 3 seed Millersville and No. 6 seed Seton Hill tomorrow at 2 p.m. in the regional final, needing only one win to move on to next week's Super Regional, which is hosted by the highest remaining seed of the two pods. The other pod's representative will either be No. 4 seed Charleston or No. 5 seed IUP, with the Crimson Hawks needing one victory.
