Box Score NORWICH, Conn. – The Fairleigh Dickinson baseball team defeated top-seeded Bryant by a score of 7-2 in the opening game of the 2015 Northeast Conference Tournament. The Knights (21-24) advance to Friday's 4 p.m. winners bracket game. FDU will play Sacred Heart, who defeated Wagner 3-1, at 4 p.m. on Friday.
WATCH: GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS & INTERVIEWS"I believe in this team," head coach
Gary Puccio said after the game. "I've told these guys that. These seniors they came here for the playoffs when they were freshman and I told them it would be great to go out as seniors making the playoffs again. This is just a special group with great team chemistry and it seems to be working."
The Knights scored a single run in the top of the third inning on an RBI single by junior
Dylan Sprague (Brunswick, N.Y./Averill Park).
Starting pitcher
Joe Flack (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's Boys) maintained the 1-0 lead until the fifth inning when Bryant tied the game with an RBI single by Brendan Bingel.
The FDU offense responded quickly and broke the game open with a five run sixth inning. A two out single by junior
Ryan Brennan (Mooresville, N.C./Mooresville) scored
Patrick McClure (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius ) from second base to give FDU a 2-1 lead. Then, after a walk to junior
John Giakas (Staten Island, N.Y./Tottenville) loaded the bases, freshman
Bobby Romano (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan ) came up and lined a bases clearing triple in to the right field corner to break the game open. Senior
Shane Siebler (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth Area) followed with a base hit through the left side to extend the Knights lead to 6-1.
Flack surrendered another run in the sixth, but worked out of further trouble with the help of a stellar running catch by shortstop
Matt McCann (West Windsor, N.J./West Windsor-Plainsboro ) to end the inning.
Ryan McGrath (Lansingburgh, N.Y./Lansingburgh) replaced Flack on the mound for the seventh inning and delivered three scoreless frames to record his first save of the season. McGrath walked one batter, but faced the minimum nine hitters over his three innings as he induced a 6-4-3 double play to end the game.
Flack was strong for the Knights over his six innings with just two runs allowed. He scattered eight hits and three walks, while striking out one. He improves to 4-2 on the season with the victory.
The FDU defense excelled behind Flack with McCann's inning ending catch in the sixth and a on the run over the shoulder catch by Sprague in the second inning highlighting the effort. Sprague's catch also ended the inning as he caught the ball for the second out, turned quickly and threw to first base to double off the runner for the final out of the frame.
FDU's seventh run came on a eighth inning double by Siebler.
Sprague, Giakas and Siebler each recorded two hits to highlight the team's nine hit attack.
Romano, batting eighth, drove in three runs and Siebler, batting ninth, drove in two.
The #4 Knights will play #3 Sacred Heart at 4 p.m. on Friday, May 22.
