Sports: Mitchell College wins NECC baseball tournament
Mariners erase last year’s nightmare and claim sixth NECC championship
New London — Mitchell College completed its Revenge Tour on Sunday. Since stumbling in the New England Collegiate Conference tournament final a year ago, the Mariners dedicated themselves to avenging that disappointing defeat. They accomplished their goal by beating defending champion Lesley University, 7-4, in the championship round to secure the baseball program's sixth conference title and fourth NCAA berth in the last five years.
"It was our mission since day one," said Jeremy Santos, a sophomore from New London. "Every day we've been grinding since the fall. There's no better feeling than winning on our field. Last year I felt like a part of me was missing not bringing home that trophy because it was here three years in a row. "Now it's back home where it's supposed to be." Coming out of the winners' bracket, Mitchell (30-8) had some cushion entering Sunday's championship round action. Lesley (27-11) needed to win twice to retain the title trophy.
The Mariners rallied from a 3-0 deficit by scoring two in the fifth and five in the sixth inning. Junior Eric Marriott's two-run home run pushed his team in front for good.
"They had a little hashtag called Revenge Tour," coach Travis Beausoleil said of his team. "It came down to the same two teams . ... It was good to win it. You work so hard all year and it all comes down to this weekend. The guys played stellar."
The tournament weekend belonged to the Mariners, who rode a potent offense, solid defense and outstanding pitching to three straight wins and a title.
Marriott (two hits, two RBI), senior Kyle Harten-
stein (4-for-4, RBI), senior Jack Finnegan (three hits, RBI), senior Garet Griffin (two hits, RBI) and Santos (two hits) helped power a 16-hit attack. All-tournament team members included Griffin, Hartenstein and Santos, who was named the most valuable player after batting a team-high .538.
In the field, Marriott saved at least one run with a spectacular diving catch in deep center field with two runners on in the third. He turned the gem into an inning-ending double play.
Junior Bryce Bedard played a key role, coming out of the bullpen in the third to stabilize the game for the Mariners. A Norwich Tech graduate from Ledyard, Bedard (6-0) earned the win, allowing a run and three hits while striking out four in 5.2 innings.
Bedard settled into a nice rhythm, retiring nine straight batters at one point.
"My arm felt so good," Bedard said. "My head coach, Travis Beausoleil, he really stresses just keep your tempo. Once you find that rhythm that's working for you, make sure you keep that tempo."
Lesley starter Brett Dabrowski frustrated Mitchell for the first four innings. The Mariners loaded the bases with nobody out in the first and didn't score. They also stranded a runner on third in the second and left 14 on base overall.
"I didn't have any doubt in my mind that we were going to comeback," Santos said. "We were just a little anxious in the beginning."
The break-through finally came in the fifth. Hartenstein's two-out single scored Santos to cut the gap to 3-1. Griffin followed with a single, chasing Dabrowski and bringing in Tom Muratore, the NECC best pitcher the last two seasons.
The Mariners knocked around Muratore in Saturday's 15-6 win that sent Lesley into the losers' bracket. They pinned the loss on him again on Sunday.
In the sixth, lead-off batter Peter Abate drove a high fastball over the left field fence to tie the score at 3-3. Junior Markus Melendez singled to end Muratore's day.
With one out, Marriott belted a two-run home run for a 5-3 lead and received the hero's treatment from his happy teammates at home plate.
"That might be one of the greatest moments of my life, if not the greatest," Marriott said.
The Mariners ended up sending 10 men to the plate. Griffin drilled an RBI double and Finnegan's single plated another run for a 7-3 edge.
The celebration countdown was underway. Bedard breezed through two more innings before departing after Vincent Taliercio's lead-off home run in the ninth.
But there would be no painful ending like last season when Lesley won the title with a walk-off grand slam. Freshman Roland Thivierge got the last three outs to pick for the save, setting off a wild celebration.
Mitchell will learn its NCAA destination and opponent next Sunday night when the NCAA Division III tournament field is announced. g.keefe@theday.com