College baseball
Central Connecticut State University is going to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in coach Charlie Hickey's 20 seasons. The Blue Devils will be joined there by Quinnipiac and UConn.
NORWICH — This was about trust. Central Connecticut coach Charlie Hickey trusted his people to make the right choices and execute when it mattered.
He gave the ball to Tom Curtin on two days’ rest, and Curtin gave the Blue Devils a chance. With the score tied in the eighth inning, Hickey let third base coach Rob Bono use his instincts.
“Coach Bono told me, ‘If you see the shortstop break, just put the bat on the ball and it’s going to be a hit,’ ” said Matt Bertochi, who stroked the winning RBI single through the vacant left side, giving Central a 3-2 victory over Bryant on Sunday at Dodd Stadium, and with it, the NEC baseball tournament title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. “It felt great to see that ball go through.”
After Chris Kanios’ leadoff double, Bryant expected Bertochi, the No. 9 hitter, to bunt. They ran the “wheel play,” rotating the infield to try to get the lead runner at third. Bertochi, with perfect execution, foiled the strategy
“They pulled that play on us earlier in the year and it worked for them,” Hickey said. “That’s a credit to Coach Bono. He’s empowered to make decisions, and I trust him completely.”
Central, which has 23 players from Connecticut on its roster, is going to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in Hickey’s 20 seasons The Blue Devils will be joined there by Quinnipiac, which scored in the 13th inning to beat Fairfield to win the MAAC championship, and UConn, expected to get an at-large berth despite its 22-5 loss to Cincinnati in the AAC final on Sunday. All three state teams will learn their assignments during the NCAA selection show beginning at noon on Monday.
The Blue Devils (30-21) had strong pitching and terrific defense throughout the tournament. Curtin, who beat Wagner 5-0 with a complete game on Thursday, pitched 5 2/3 innings on Sunday and was the tournament’s MVP.
“When your senior, after two days’ rest, wants the ball … ” Hickey said. “Hey, in the hotel I asked these kids to be competitive, and when it’s time to be competitive, you let them go out there.”