Bingel pitches Bryant into NEC title contest

NORWICH, Conn. — Following Thursday’s openinground win over Central Connecticut State, Bryant baseball coach Steve Owens wanted to wait and see who his No. 1 Bulldogs would face in Friday’s NEC Tournament winners’ bracket final before deciding if he would use freshman lefty Steve Theetge or Brandon Bingle on the mound.

Owens tabbed Bingel to face No. 2 Sacred Heart and the junior delivered a Dodd Stadium.

Bingel didn’t allow the Pioneers a hit until the fourth inning and he wound up earning the 5-1 victory by tossing 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball. The righty struck out five batters and allowed just four hits to pick up his second straight victory at the NEC Tournament.

No. 1 Bryant (46-10) set a new program record for wins Friday and the Bulldogs will look for their third NEC title in the last four seasons when they face either the Pioneers or No. 3 Fairleigh Dickinson in the tournament championship game Saturday at 4 p.m.

Offensively, junior lead-off hitter Cole Fabio scored three runs and reached base three times, while senior catcher Buck McCarthy chipped in with two hits and two RBIs.

Bryant has yet to trail in the tournament, as the Bulldogs scored in the opening inning for the second straight day when Fabio was plated on an RBI single by McCarthy. Senior Robby Rinn, who singled to move Fabio into scoring position, scored on an AJ Zarozny single.

That’s all the support Bingel needed. The junior worked out of jams in the fourth and fourth innings and then faced the minimum number of Pioneers in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings before giving up a run in the eighth.