Washington, D.C. – The Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team was knocked off by Catholic University and No. 10 Salve Regina University on the final day of the Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational on Saturday.
Stevens (3-2) fell 3-2 to host Catholic before dropping a 19-4 decision to Salve Regina.
HOW IT HAPPENED (Catholic)
After a scoreless first inning, the Ducks struck first in the top of the second.
Dylan Fishbough led off with a bunt single and moved to third on an error and a passed ball. Edward "E.J." Balewitz Jr. was hit by a pitch and stole second, and Fishbough came home on a throwing error by the pitcher to make it 1-0.
Catholic loaded the bases in the second against
David Finch, but the right-hander escaped the jam with a strikeout. The Cardinals evened the score in the fourth, plating a run on three walks and a single. Stevens regained the lead in the fifth.
Quinton Sterling reached on a one-out infield hit and
Griffin Zitko was hit by a pitch. After
Garret Wolf grounded out, Sterling scored all the way from second to give the Ducks a 2-1 edge.
Reliever
Connor Herlihy worked a perfect fifth but ran into trouble in the sixth. Following a double down the left-field line and a hit by pitch with one out, the right-hander settled in, inducing a flyout and a fielder's choice to retire the side.
Catholic took the lead for good in the seventh, pushing across two runs on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly. Stevens put runners on base in both the eighth and ninth innings, but a flyout ended each threat as the Ducks were unable to pull even.
HOW IT HAPPENED (Salve Regina)
Stevens needed just two batters to take the lead against the Seahawks, as Balewitz Jr. launched a pitch over the left-field wall for a solo home run. Salve Regina responded in the bottom of the second, using back-to-back solo home runs to take a 2-1 advantage.
The Ducks tied the game in the third.
Chip Krese led off with a single and moved to second on a Sterling walk. Zitko followed with a line-drive single to center, scoring Krese from second.
Zach DeGeorge retired the first two batters of the fifth but ran into trouble thereafter. A single, a walk, and a hit by pitch loaded the bases before a two-run single brought in a pair. A throwing error allowed another run to score, and a double steal capped the rally with a runner swiping home to make it 6-2.
Evan Carrier entered and induced a groundout to third to end the inning.
The Seahawks broke the game open in the sixth, scoring six runs on two hits. Stevens chipped away in the seventh as
Jason Wu singled with one out and moved to third on a Krese double to right. Both runners scored on a Balewitz Jr. single up the middle. Zitko was hit by a pitch to put two more aboard, but the rally ended on a fielder's choice.
Noah Stopnik worked out of trouble in the bottom of the seventh, highlighted by
Adam Barrington throwing out a runner at the plate. Salve Regina added seven runs in the eighth, six of which were unearned.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE (Catholic)
- Finch set a career high with seven strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.
- Herlihy tossed a career-best 2 1/3 innings, allowing one hit and one walk.
- Krese recorded the lone extra-base hit with a leadoff triple.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE (Salve Regina)
- Balewitz Jr. hit his first collegiate home run and has driven in six runs over the first three games of the season.
- Krese went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
- Rob Hughes struck out four in two innings, while DeGeorge added four strikeouts in 2 2/3 frames.
UP NEXT
Stevens visits William Paterson University on Tuesday, with first pitch in Wayne, N.J. scheduled for 2:15 p.m.
