WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. - On day three of the NEC Championships, #3 FDU was eliminated by #4 Sacred Heart in a tough 5-4 battle. The loss ends the Knights season after they eclipsed 30 wins for the first time in program history and broke nearly every offensive and pitching team record throughout the year. They saw production from players that the program has never seen before as
Hunter D'Amato slugged over .400 on the season while driving in 56 runs on 85 hits; the outstanding regular season extended into the playoffs as he picked up six hits in three games including three in Friday's elimination game. On top of D'Amato's offensive production the Knights picked up huge seasons from
Rich Racobaldo and
Brendan Medoro on the mound. Racobaldo pitched to career high numbers with a 3.52 ERA while striking out 79 batters in 79.1 innings; he recorded a 8-2 record; like D'Amato his dominance shined in the postseason when he pitched a complete game shutout in Wednesday's win over #6 Maryland Eastern Shore. Medoro held things down for the Knights out of the 'pen all season with a stellar 9-0 record; his eight inning performance in Friday's outing against #4 Sacred Heart was one of the main reasons FDU was able to hang close in the game.
The Knights scored first for the third straight game as D'Amato lined a single to right field to get FDU on the board early with a 2-0 lead. However the lead did not last as first-time starter
Patrick Gardner struggled to throw strikes in the second frame as he walked in a run with the bases loaded. Due to the circumstances of it being an elimination game,
Manny Roman called on his best option out of the bullpen in Medoro. He struggled to settle in for his first inning before cruising the rest of the way. In the third inning he relinquished two earned runs before throwing a bunted ball away which allowed a third run to score and extend the Pioneers lead to 5-2.
The very next inning the Knights responded with two runs themselves to cut into the deficit and only trail by a run with more than half the game remaining.
Luke Cantwell picked up the third run of the game on a sacrifice fly only before
Justin Sierra reached on an error to extend the inning and allow another run to score; the lead was cut down to 5-4.
Both offenses were stifled by the opposing relievers until the Knights made their final push to stave off elimination in the bottom of the eighth inning. FDU was able to load the bases with nobody out after
Joan Sosa, D'Amato and Cantwell picked up three straight singles to get the inning going. After back to back strike outs the Pioneers pitcher was able to pick up an inning ending ground ball to escape the Knights threat and hold onto their lead heading into the ninth inning.
The Knights were only able to send three batters to the plate in the ninth inning and were shut down by the Sacred Heart closer to end the historic FDU season. Roman and his squad will head into the offseason with significant building blocks and high hopes for the 2024 season where they will look to grow off of the first 30 win season in program history.
