GRAND CHUTE, WIS. – Jared Welch and Philip Maldari combined for six hits and seven RBI as 22nd-ranked Emory defeated fifth-ranked Cortland, 9-7, in an elimination game at the NCAA Div. III World Series. Cortland (36-10) finishes tied for fifth place at the World Series with a 1-2 mark. The Red Dragons were making their 12th Series appearance and now have placed second twice, third twice, fourth twice and fifth four times.
Emory (36-12) will face Southern Maine on Monday at noon. The Eagles are one of four teams remaining in the eight-team tournament.
Welch finished 3-for-4 with a double, four RBI and two runs and Maldari went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI. Also for the Eagles, Brett Lake was 2-for-4 and Wes Peacock and Daniel Iturrey each were 2-for-5, with Iturrey scoring three runs. Jared Kahn also scored three times and finished 1-for-3 with a walk and RBI.
Junior
Mark DeMilio (Valhalla) finished 4-for-5 with two runs scored for the Red Dragons. Junior
Vinny Bomasuto (Dunkirk) was 2-for-5 with a double and three RBI, senior
Bryan Marotta (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) ended 2-for-4 with a run and senior
Anthony Iacomini (South Salem/John Jay-Cross River) was 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run. Each team finished with 14 hits.
(UPDATE May 27: DeMilio was named to the World Series all-tournament team. He batted .615 (8-for-13) with five runs, two doubles, one RBI and one steal and recorded 11 fielding chances without an error at second base in Cortland's three games.)
Hans Hansen earned the win despite allowing 10 hits and five runs, four earned, in six and two thirds innings. He struck out three and walked one. Kyle Monk earned his seventh save, six of which have come in NCAA tournament play. He threw the final two and a third innings and allowed four hits and two runs.
Sophomore
Brandon Serio (Bedford Hills/Fox Lane) dropped to 9-3 with the loss. He was touched for 10 hits and six runs, all earned, in four and two thirds innings. He fanned three batters and walked one.
Cortland took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. DeMilio singled and went to second on a wild pickoff throw. He moved to third on a groundout and scored on Iacomini's RBI single that was lost in the sun by the Emory right fielder. Senior
P.J. Rinaldi (Bethel, CT) walked and, with two outs, senior
Max Rosing (Rockville Centre/South Side) hit an RBI single through the right side.
Emory answered with three runs in the bottom of the first. With two outs, Lake and Iturrey each singled and Kahn was hit by a pitch. Welch followed with a two-run single through the right side and Maldari hit a ball to right that was lost in the sun for an RBI single.
In the top of the second,
Michael DeCarr (Syracuse/Westhill) reached with one out on catcher's interference and DeMilio's hit-and-run single through the right side moved him to third. Bomasuto hit a deep double to left to drive in both runners and Cortland led 4-3.
It stayed that way until the fifth when Emory again mounted a two-out rally. Iturrey singled, stole second and scored on Kahn's single to right. Welch hit an RBI double to left center, and Maldari knocked out Serio with an RBI single to right.
Trailing 6-4, Cortland closed to within a run in the top of the seventh on a DeMilio infield single, a Bomasuto fielder's choice, a wild pitch, a groundout and a Rinaldi RBI single. With first and third and two outs, Cortland attempted a first-and-third double steal play, but Rinaldi was thrown out at the plate.
The Eagles then put up three runs in the bottom of the frame, the first of which came when they successfully executed the first-and-third play. Iturrey stole home on the play and Kahn stole second. The other runs scored on a Welch RBI single and a Maldari RBI double.
Down 9-5, Cortland mounted a rally in the eighth and was on the brink of at least tying the game. Rosing was hit by a pitch and, with one out, Marotta singled through the left side. DeCarr singled up the middle to drive in Rosing, DeMilio singled to right to load the bases, and Bomasuto's fly ball dropped in down the right field line to bring home Marotta and Cortland trailed 9-7.
Monk, however, got Iacomini to ground to third for a 5-4-3 double play, with the throw to first just nipping Iacomini, to end the threat and preserve Emory's two-run lead. Monk then retired the side in order in the ninth to seal the win.
Box ScoreTournament Interactive BracketFull Replay of Game (on NCAA.com)Cortland Postgame Press Conference:
