Rindge, N.H. – After a 31-win season that culminated in the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth, the Molloy College baseball team saw its record-setting season come to a sour end as the Lions dropped an 11-5 loser's bracket contest to No. 8 Southern New Hampshire on Friday (May 20) at Pappas Field on the campus of Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, N.H.
The back-and-forth contest between the second-seeded Penmen and sixth-seeded Lions opened with the maroon and white scoring the game's first run as sophomore catcher Jack McCarty (Huntington, N.Y.) singled home Brian Murphy (Elmont, N.Y.) in the second inning. SNHU would be held quiet until the top of the fourth inning; junior outfielder Carson Helms (Farmington, Conn.) led off the frame with a double against Molloy starter Anthony Catinella (Middle Village, N.Y.) before Derek Bauer (Millis, Mass.) brought Helms home with a triple down the right field line. Freshman catcher Joshua Zbierski (Stafford Springs, Conn.) brought home another run on a fielder's choice and Sean Webster (Boston, Mass.) singled in a run to put the Penmen ahead by a 3-1 score after four innings of play. In the top of the fifth, Southern New Hampshire would break the game wide open thanks to a three-run home run off the bat of Helms that sailed over the left-field wall. Zbierski singled in another run in the frame to give the Penmen a 7-1 lead.
The never-say-die attitude of the Lions, however, would prove to make this game closer than the Penmen originally planned. In the bottom of the sixth, sophomore Elijah Leerdam (Jamaica, N.Y.) led off the frame with a ground-rule double, coming home to score thanks to a wild throw from shortstop Manny Cruz (Wolcott, Conn.) on a ball hit by Anthony Alberghina (Staten Island, N.Y.). A single by Murphy moved Alberghina to third base, and the junior center fielder would later score on a passed ball. McCarty singled in another run and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Angelo Navetta (Staten Island, N.Y.) brought home Anthony Galanoudis (Farmingdale, N.Y.) with the Lions' fourth run of the inning. Molloy would be down 7-5 after the bottom of the sixth.
SNHU scored a run in the top of the seventh thanks to a run-scoring base hit by Zbierski. With an 8-5 lead going into the top of the eighth inning, the Penmen went for the knockout blow as Bauer crushed a three-run home run to right field off of reliever Shawn Klotsche (Wantagh, N.Y.). The second-seed in the East Region led by an 11-5 score and the long ball capped the scoring for Southern New Hampshire. Molloy attempted one last-ditch effort to save the season, and Alberghina led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk. Following a single by Murphy, however, senior pitcher Joe McCarthy (Nashua, N.H.) retired the next three batters in order to eliminate the Lions from the NCAA Tournament.
Molloy finishes up the season with a 31-23 overall record, the fourth season in program history that the team won 31 games.
Provided by the Molloy Sports Information Department.
