MOUNTIE BASEBALL SUFFERS HEARTBREAKING LOSS IN NCAA REGIONAL

On Saturday, the Mount Aloysius College baseball team played in the first Marietta Regional Elimination game at 11 a.m. against Kalamazoo College, with the winner moving on and the loser going home. The Mounties were dealt their second consecutive walk-off defeat, dropping the contest, 8-7, in ten innings.

Jeremy Iellimo led the Mounties, going 2-for-4 and scoring three runs. Aidan Bell and Tyler Suder each had two hits and two RBIs, to help drive the Mountie offense. Mountie starter, Douglas Cannon, produced the best performance on the mound, as he went 5.2 innings and allowed four runs on ten hits. He worked himself out of multiple jams to keep the Mounties in the lead.

Mount Aloysius jumped ahead in the first inning for the second day in a row, but this time, unconventionally. The Mounties scored twice without picking up a hit. Tyler Quade walked with one-out and Iellimo grounded into a fielder's choice, but both runners ended up in scoring position when the Hornets threw the ball away. A passed ball allowed Quade to score and Iellimo to move up to third, then eventually score on a sacrifice fly, giving the Mounties a 2-0 lead. Kalamazoo added a run in the bottom of the first, as their leadoff hitter, Blake Bean, manufactured the run by singling then stealing second. He then attempted to steal third and upon the successful attempt, the ball was thrown into the outfield, allowing him to score, cutting the Mountie lead to 2-1. The Mounties responded in the top of the second, in the conventional way, using four hits to score three runs and open up a 5-2 lead. Joshua Brown and Trap Wentling both doubled, while Suder had a two-RBI single, driving in Wentling and Jackson Kozlovac, who singled earlier in the inning. After a key double play in the bottom of the second, the Hornets picked up three two-out singles, resulting in a run, making it 5-2 Mounties after two frames. Neither team was able to push across a run in the third or fourth, as both side settled down on the mound. In the top of the sixth inning, the Mounties got singles from Iellimo and Troy Emert putting runners at first and third. Brown would pull a ball for his second double of the day, scoring Iellimo and extending the lead to 6-2. The game would remain 6-2, until the bottom of the sixth. Kalamazoo ended up scoring two runs, with two outs, cutting the lead in half, 6-4, and pushing Cannon from the game. Seth Smith came on in relief and stopped the rally, with a strikeout to end the inning. 

Both offenses went 1-2-3 in the seventh and eighth innings, advancing to the final frame, 6-4. With one out in the top of the ninth, Iellimo singled and stole second. Bell would single up the middle to score Iellimo and add the crucial insurance run, giving the Mounties a 7-4 lead with only three outs to get. After two quick outs, the Hornets strung together three well-placed singles to load the bases, bringing the go-ahead run to the plate and forcing Smith out of the game. A walk brought in the first run, trimming the lead to 7-5 and bringing in . A two-out single allowed the tying run to come around, knotting the game at seven. Coyle would induce a ground ball for the third out, but it would be too late as the tie game sent the Mounties to extra-innings for the second straight day. Mount Aloysius went 1-2-3 in the top of the tenth, then saw Coyle get the first two outs of the bottom half. A double and a wild pitch put the winning run at third base with two outs. The next batter walked, but was irrelevant to the outcome. The number-nine batter then blooped a single to centerfield, scoring the runner from third base and giving Kalamazoo the walk-off, come-from-behind victory, 8-7.

While Mount Aloysius was out-hit, 16-11, they had seven guys in their lineup register a hit. They also stranded more runners, 9-6, than the Hornets, leaving some opportunities on the base paths. Kalamazoo used five pitchers, compared to only four for the Mounties. While Cannon started and went 5.2 innings, the Hornet starter only went 4.0 innings and no reliever threw more than 2.0 innings for K'zoo. 

The Mounties finish with 27 wins, tying the program record. It was their first NCAA appearance in program history.