SUNY Cortland Athletics

2011 NCAA DIVISION III BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

Auburn (NY) Regional – Friday, May 20, 2011

Game 12: #4 The College at Brockport (NY) 6, #5 Eastern Connecticut State University 3 (ECSU eliminated)

Recap by Mark Coley

AUBURN, NY – Fourth-seeded The College at Brockport overcame an early 3-0 deficit by scoring a combined four runs in the fourth and fifth innings, with senior shortstop Tom McCormick (Utica, NY/Utica Notre Dame) driving in the winning run with the bases loaded after reaching on a fielding error to highlight a four-run, five hit fifth inning, en route to a 6-3 win over fifth-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University in an elimination game at the 2011 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship Auburn Regional co-hosted by SUNY Cortland and the Auburn Doubledays.

The game, which started at 10:59 p.m. and finished at 2:20 a.m. Saturday morning, was the final contest of a five-game schedule, which included the final two-innings a suspended game and the start of another game held up from Thursday due to inclement weather.

The Golden Eagles (30-13) will take on top seed and co-host SUNY Cortland in an elimination game on Saturday, May 21 at 1:00 p.m. The meeting will mark the sixth meeting of the year between the State University of New York Athletic Conference rivals (Cortland holding a 5-1 edge), the last coming in the championship round of the SUNYAC Tournament, where Brockport forced a deciding game with a 5-3 win before dropping a 2-1 decision to the Red Dragons in the final.

The Warriors, who posted a 2-0 win over Brockport in the tournament’s opening game on Wednesday, ended their 32nd NCAA tournament appearance with a 34-13 record, finishing 2-2 for the week.

Four players tallied multiple hits for Brockport, led by junior left fielder Mike DeGregory (Saratoga Springs, NY/Schuylerville) going 3-for-5. Junior designated hitter Anthony Siracusa (Auburn, NY) and senior right fielder Zach Prentice (Auburn, NY) each batted 2-for-5, with Prentice scoring twice and Siracusa contributing a run and a run batted in, and senior catcher Mike Goldstein (Slingerlands, NY/Guilderland) finished 2-for-4 with an RBI.

The Golden Eagles scored the game’s first run in the top of the opening inning on a two-out double by Siracusa, driving in senior first baseman Max Zimmerman (East Amherst, NY/Williamsville North) from first base. Eastern Connecticut State answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second thanks to an RBI double from freshman shortstop Danny O’Connell (Braintree, MA) and a run scoring single by freshman second baseman Mitch Plourde (Ellington, CT).

Brockport would tie the score in the top of the fourth as centerfielder Max Keado drove in a run after drawing a bases-loaded walk before breaking the game open in the fifth. Goldstein (single) and Keado (ground out) drove in a run each in the big inning, while another came in unearned on an error.

Senior right hander Steve Locke (Oxford, NY) pitched seven and one-third innings to pick up the win, improving to 5-1. Locke faced 30 batters, allowing seven hits, three runs and two walks while striking out five. Siracusa came in to toss the final inning and register the save. After retiring the leadoff batter, he gave up back-to-back singles with the tying run at the plate before ending the game with a strikeout and pop foul.

Sophomore Mike Riemer (Ellington, CT/Berkshire School), the third of seven pitchers used for Eastern Connecticut State, was charged with the loss. Riemer a third of an inning and faced two batters in the fifth, giving up two hits and two runs .