Late Rally Allows Big Green to Sweep Doubleheader from FDU

Saturday, March 2

Cary, N.C. / NTC Stadium

1:00 PM

Dartmouth College

2-4

Fairleigh Dickinson

2-1-1

Fairleigh Dickinson

Dartmouth

Max Hunter struck out six in three innings to earn the win in game two

Photo by: Doug Austin

Late Rally Allows Big Green to Sweep Doubleheader from FDU

3/2/2019 7:52:00 PM | Baseball

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Trevor Johnson stroked a two-out, two-run single in the ninth and Kade Kretzschmar hit a sac fly in the 10th for the sweep

By: Rick Bender

CARY, N.C. — Trailing by two in the ninth of the second game of a doubleheader, Dartmouth got a two-out, two-run single by junior Trevor Johnson, and freshman Kade Kretzschmar drove home the game-winner in the 10th with a sacrifice fly to lift the Big Green (3-4) to the sweep over Fairleigh Dickinson (2-2-1), 6-1 and 4-3, on the second day of the Army Baseball Classic at the USA Baseball Training Complex.

Freshman right-hander Nathan Skinner (1-10 picked up the victory on the mound in game one that was a scheduled seven-inning affair for his first collegiate victory. The rookie held the Knights scoreless through four before being lifted in the fifth after two one-out walks and an RBI single by Nate Brodsky. But junior southpaw Michael Parsons took over and picked a runner off second before getting the third out, to end the threat.

It looked as FDU would salvage a split with a 3-1 lead — thanks to three unearned runs — heading into the ninth of the nightcap, but junior Blake Crossing gave the Green hope by drawing a leadoff walk. After a force out, senior Steffen Torgersen ripped a double to put the tying runs in scoring position. But they were still there with two outs and the bases loaded when Johnson strode to the plate. He took two strikes and a pitch out of the zone before sizing one up and depositing it into right-center for the game-tying knock.

In the top of the 10th, reliever Emmanuel Corporan (0-1) came on and put the first two men he faced on base with a walk and a hit batter. Crossing sacrifice the runners to second and third before Kretzschmar lofted a fly to center, deep enough to score senior Nate Ostmo for a 4-3 lead.

Sophomore southpaw Max Hunter (1-0), who took over on the mound in the eighth, finished off his impressive outing by retiring the side in order in the bottom half for his first career victory. The left-hander had also struck out the side in the ninth, and allowed just one unearned run on one hit with no walks and a career-high six strikeouts.

Dartmouth's ninth-inning rally ruined the fine start by FDU's Chris Quijano, who surrendered one run on just two hits and a walk over five frames while fanning five.

The three Big Green pitchers — junior Tyler Fagler, freshman Justin Murray and Hunter — combined to strike out 14 batters, and Fagler twirled three scoreless stanzas in his first start of the year while Murray punched out six in four frames.

In the opener, Dartmouth already had a 6-0 lead when the Knight tallied their lone thanks to a four-run third and two more in the fourth. A two-out error in the third allowed the first two runs to score, and after sophomore Ubaldo Lopez delivered an RBI single, another run came home when the ball escaped the right fielder.

In the fourth, sophomore Bennett McCaskill stroked a one-out triple and scored on a double off the bat of Torgersen. Senior Sean Sullivan followed by rapping a pitch back through the box to plate the sixth and final Dartmouth run, chasing Knight hurler Brendan Medoro (1-1).

After retiring the side in order in the sixth, Parsons sealed the win in the seventh by inducing a game-ending double play with two men on.

Dartmouth had nine hits in the opener with junior Michael Calamari, McCaskill and Torgersen each recording two as the trio combined for three doubles, a triple and four runs scored.

Medoro was charged with six runs, only two earned, over four-plus innings, walking one and striking out one.

The Big Green will play their final game at the Army Baseball Classic on Sunday at 10 a.m. against Saint Joseph's. The game was originally scheduled for noon, but the time was moved up to beat impending rain in the forecast.