VERO BEACH, Fla. — The Norwich University baseball team closed out its Spring Break trip Friday morning by earning its first victory of the 2026 season, rallying late to defeat Northwestern (Minn.) in Vero Beach.
The Eagles struck first with two runs in the bottom of the opening inning and held the lead for much of the contest as the game settled into a pitcher's duel.
Norwich starter
Carson Rath (Glens Falls, N.Y.) delivered a strong performance in his second start of the season, tossing seven innings while allowing two runs on seven hits. Rath walked one and struck out six to earn his first win of the year.
The Cadets broke through in the sixth inning when
Geffen Franus (Leesburg, Va.) launched a two-out solo home run to cut the Northwestern lead in half.
Norwich evened the score an inning later.
Trevor Lussier (Lyndonville, Vt.) opened the frame with a double and came around to score when
Jack Lang (Aurora, Ohio) delivered an RBI single two batters later to make it a 2-2 contest.
The Cadets grabbed their first lead of the day in the eighth inning.
Kevin Ohlsen (Shirley, N.Y.) reached scoring position before
Michael Sabasteanski (Ashburn, Va.) drove him home with an RBI double to put Norwich in front.
James Vinchetti (Cromwell, Conn.) sealed the victory on the mound, working two scoreless innings out of the bullpen and striking out two to earn his first collegiate save.
Lussier paced the Norwich offense with a 2-for-4 day that included a pair of doubles, while Franus finished 1-for-4 with a home run, run scored, and RBI.
Jack Medhurst (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) also recorded a double in the victory.
Norwich returns north to face intrastate rival Middlebury on March 10 at 3 p.m.
