HARTFORD, CT -- An early four-run deficit ultimately proved just a skosh too big for the Amherst baseball team Friday as the Mammoths dropped a 6-3 decision to Trinity in Game 2 of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championship Semifinals at Murren Family Field at DiBenedetto Stadium Friday evening.
Amherst, now 24-13 on the season, will face Middlebury at 9 a.m. Saturday in the double-elimination tournament's first elimination game. Trinity, now 27-14, moves on to face Tufts, which defeated the Panthers earlier in the day.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
* Trinity took a 1-0 lead in the first off Amherst starter
Nick Fassert when Tyler Bernstein led off with a double and scored on an RBI-groundout. The Bantams made it 4-0 in the top of the third when Dylan Schnitzer ripped a two-run single to right and Andrew Park's fielder's choice grounder scored Aidan Stern.
* Amherst answered with a run in its half of the third.
Ben Smith drew a lead-off walk and took second on a ground out and third on a fly out. He scored when Dubetsky ripped a hard grounder to first and beat the throw to the bag, taking second on a trowing error on the play.
* The Mammoths crept to within one at 4-3 in the fourth.
Charlie LaFreniere put together a great at-bat leading off the frame, ultimately lining a frozen rope into left center for a single.
Justin Orridge followed by blasting the first pitch he saw deep to right field for a two-run, opposite-field home run that made it 4-3. But Trinity starter Andrew Oppenheimer kept is composure and retired six of the next seven batters.
* Oppenheimer would go eight frames and allow only five hits to Amherst. The Mammoths' Orridge put a scare into the crowd in the bottom of the eighth when with two outs and a man on, Orridge drove a high fly ball to left that was caught at te warning track to end the inning. '
* In the Amherst ninth, Bantam center fielder Cole Mascolo made a sensational diving catch in left center to rob lead-off hitter
Zander Carnahan of a basehit. However,
Matthew Chen and
Ben Smith put together back-to-back great at-bats, working walks off Bantam closer Tyler Fahey on 3-2 pitches. That brought the tying run to the plate twice, but Fahey closed out the game with a fly out and a strikeout.
* Mammoth sophomore
Nick Fassert took the loss, going six innings and allowing five runs, all earned, on eight hits and three walks. He struck out seven.
Matt Tabet pitched the final three frames, allowing just one run.
* Orridge was 2 for 3 with a walk and two RBIs for Amherst. Dubetsky was 2 for 4 with an RBI.
