Two Walk-Off Winners Give Baseball Eighth Straight Rolfe Title

Sunday, April 19

Hanover, N.H.

12:00 PM

Dartmouth College

15-19, 4-11

BROWN

8-25, 11-4

Brown

Dartmouth

Two Walk-Off Winners Give Baseball Eighth Straight Rolfe Title

4/19/2015 5:13:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Dartmouth

HANOVER, N.H. — Dartmouth senior Matt MacDowell hit a walk-off sacrifice fly in the first game of a doubleheader against Brown, then scored the game-winner in the bottom of the ninth in the series finale to help the Big Green sweep the four-game series with the Bears, 2-1 and 8-7. Coupled with Harvard's two losses to Yale this afternoon, Dartmouth (16-19, 12-4 Ivy) clinched its eighth-straight Rolfe Division title to qualify for the best-of-three Ivy League Championship Series slated for May 2-3.

Brown (8-26, 4-12 Ivy) trailed in both games heading into the final frame, only to tie the score each time. But the Big Green were up to the task in the bottom halves to extend their winning streak to 10 games.

Looking to finish the sweep, Dartmouth sent freshman Patrick Peterson to the mound for the ninth of the nightcap with a 7-5 lead. But Noah Shulman hit a one-out drive to left that just cleared the fence for a game-tying two-run homer, his team-leading sixth of the season.

Brown also turned to a new reliever in the ninth in hopes of forcing extra innings, with Dave St. Lawrence looking to redeem himself after suffering the loss in the first game of the day. It was not to be, however, as the Big Green loaded the bases on a MacDowell single, a walk to senior Matt Parisi and a solid single through the left side by junior Nick Ruppert. Up to the plate stepped Joe Purritano, who was hitting .475 with 10 extra-base hits in 12 career games against the Bears. The junior took a hack at the first pitch, hitting a slow chopper toward the second baseman Shulman. His only play was at the plate, but MacDowell just beat the throw to score the winning run.

The Big Green had taken a 7-5 lead in the seventh on when Parisi lined a full-count pitch with two outs just off the glove of a leaping Shulman, driving in the runners from second and third for a two-run single.

Dartmouth never trailed in the game, though Brown did rally to tie the score on three occasions, the last time in the ninth. Parisi, who went 3-for-4 with two walks, two runs and two RBIs, led off the first with a double and eventually scored on a Nick Lombardi grounder to short, his first of four RBIs in the contest. Freshman Kyle Holbrook followed by dropping an RBI single into center just out of the reach of a diving Robert Henry for a 2-0 lead.

After Brown tied the score in the third on Will Marcal's two-run blast, his third four-bagger of the year, the Big Green answered right back in the bottom half as Lombardi stroked a two-out, two-run single back through the box to score Parisi and Ruppert, both of whom had singled.

In the fourth, Dartmouth scored an unearned run that was forced home when Lombardi walked with the bases loaded. But again the Bears battled back, plating two in the fifth to chase senior Louis Concato from the mound, and another in the sixth to tie the score at five.

Every starter in the Big Green lineup had at least one hit, led by Parisi and Ruppert with three apiece, as the offense collected 15 knocks. Henry was 3-for-5 with a double and two runs for the Bears to lead their 13-hit attack while Marcal drove in three runs.

Peterson (3-0) was credited with the victory, who has a win or save in each of his last six appearances, while St. Lawrence (1-5) took the loss.

Junior right-hander Duncan Robinson was dominant on the mound in the opener, holding Brown to just one walk — his first issued in 28 innings — over the first 4.2 innings before Nick Fornaca stroked a single. Tim McKeithan beat out an infield hit to start the sixth, but was immediately gunned down by MacDowell trying to steal second.

Meanwhile, Brown starter Reid Anderson was nearly as effective, surrendering three walks, two hit batters and just one hit through six innings. That one hit, however, was a third-inning single by freshman Dustin Shirley, who scooted to third when the ball got past the right fielder Marcal. Parisi followed by lofting a fly ball to center, allowing Shirley to score an unearned run and give the Green a 1-0 lead.

The score remained that way until the seventh and final frame when the Bears finally touched Robinson for a run. Marcal atoned for his error by ripping a one-out double, then came around to score when a liner off the bat of Marc Sredojevic just got past Robinson for an RBI single up the middle.

St. Lawrence replaced Anderson to start the bottom half and was instantly greeted with a first-pitch single by Ruppert — the second and final Dartmouth hit. Holbrook laid down a sacrifice bunt, and a wild pitch with MacDowell at the plate allowed Ruppert to take third. The count went full before MacDowell hit a fly ball plenty deep enough to center to bring home Ruppert with the winning run.

Robinson (4-2) finished the game having allowed the one run on four hits and one walk while striking out six.

Dartmouth is next scheduled to play its final Ivy League series against Harvard (18-19, 7-9 Ivy) next weekend. The first doubleheader will take place in Hanover on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m., which will be the Big Green's Senior Day. The second twinbill will begin the following day in Cambridge, also at 1 p.m. All four games will be streamed live on Big Green Insider via the Ivy League Digital Network.

Notes: Dartmouth's 10-game winning streak is its longest since rattling off 12 in a row during the 2012 campaign … since divisional play began in 1993, only Princeton has strung together more consecutive division titles, winning the Gehrig Division nine straight years (1996-2004) … freshman infielder Justin Fowler extended his hitting streak to six with a double in the seventh of game two, which also pushed his streak of succesfully reaching base to 12 games dating back to March 20 … the Big Green are 15-1 against Brown at Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park since the renovation in 2009, sweeping the last three series … Robinson is now 3-1 with a 0.99 ERA in four Ivy League starts … Dartmouth has now played 100 games at renovated Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park. The Big Green are 82-18 in those games … the last time Dartmouth had two walk-off wins in the same day came on April 12, 1997 against Princeton. Mike Conway had the game-winner in the first game for a 2-1 victory, then James Little had an RBI single to win game two, 3-2.