On Sunday May 18, the Kean University baseball team (38-8) triumphed 4-3 over SUNY Cortland Red Dragons (31-13) in the NCAA Division III Union Regional Championship game, to claim their seventh regional title in program history.
The Kean Cougars got on the board first in the bottom of the fourth inning. CJ Tomalavage and Dan Reistle singeld to start the inning off and then each moved up a base on a successful sacrifice from Brett Hilsheimer. Then John Chiusano came up clutch with runners in scoring position, plating both Tomalavage and Reistle on an RBI double to make it 2-0 Cougars.
The Cougars made it 3-0 in the fifth when Chiusano hit a sacrifice fly which scored Tyler Stone.
In the top of the seventh, the Red Dragons ruined Kean starting pitcher Christian Pareja’s shutout on a two-run home run by Cortland’s Nick Marola to left-center field.
In the bottom of the eighth, with two outs and Kean’s Dominic Masino on second base, Kean’s Kyle Adorno drove in Masino with an RBI single to center field.
The Cougars held a 4-2 lead heading into the top of the ninth innning. Kean reliever Cal Chase was on the mound and got the first out. But then Cortland’s Adam Mieczkowski took Chase deep to left for a solo shot that pulled the visitors within one of the lead.
As Chase was taken out for closer Jason Basilicata, the drama continued at Jim Hynes stadium.
The first batter Basilicata faced, Marola, hit a double into the gap, putting the tying run on base. Then Kean’s defense shined when Cortland’s Talon Elkins hit a low-liner to center field that was charged and caught by Adorno. Marola strayed too far off second base and Adorno threw him out at second base to end the game.
Kean University took home their seventh regional title in a close one-run affair on their home field.
The top performers of the game were Kean’s Chiusano who went 1-for-3 with three RBI at the dish, Cortland’s Marola who went 3-for-4 with two RBI and Pareja who started the game on the mound. Over the course of six and two-thirds innings, Pareja did yeoman’s work limiting Cortland to two runs and earned three strikeouts.
Kean advances to the Super Regional round where they will face Salve Regina University, who advanced for the second straight year thanks to a 15-1 drubbing of TCNJ on Sunday. Kean will face Salve Regina on Friday at a location to be determined.
