FRANKLIN, Mass. - The Norwich University baseball team endured a tough afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action on Monday, falling twice to Dean College at Longley Field in a pair of narrow setbacks.  The Bulldogs claimed the opener, 4-3, before outlasting the Cadets, 9-8, in a 13-inning nightcap.

Despite the two losses, Norwich showed plenty of fight throughout the twin bill, combining for 25 hits across the two contests and erasing an early deficit in game two before Dean walked it off in the 13th inning.

Michael Sabasteanski (Ashburn, Va.), Jack Medhurst (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), Domenic Swaine (Leominster, Mass.), Trevor Lussier (Lyndonville, Vt.), and Jon Ringer (Cupertino, Calif.) all turned in strong offensive performances on the day, while Dillan Garza (San Antonio, Texas.) delivered key RBIs in both contests.

Game 1: Dean 4, Norwich 3

Norwich struck first in the opener, manufacturing a run in the top of the first.  Medhurst stole second, advanced to third on an error, and came home on a sacrifice fly to right by Sabasteanski to give the Cadets an early 1-0 advantage.

Dean answered in the bottom half with an RBI double to even the game, then moved in front in the third on an unearned run after a strikeout reached first and allowed a run to score.

The Cadets reclaimed the lead in the fourth.  John O'Connor (Southington, Conn.) and Sabasteanski both came around to score when Garza lined a two-run single, pushing Norwich back in front, 3-2.

That edge held until the sixth, when Dean pieced together the decisive rally.  The Bulldogs scored twice in the inning, taking advantage of an error to move back ahead, 4-3.

Norwich could not find the equalizer over the final frame, dropping the opener by a single run.

Sabasteanski paced the offense in game one, going 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored.  Garza drove in two, while Geffen Franus (Leesburg, Va.), O'Connor, and Ringer each added a hit.  Medhurst scored once and stole a base in the setback.

On the mound, Carson Rath (Glens Falls, N.Y.) turned in a complete-game effort, allowing four runs, three earned, on seven hits while striking out six over six innings.

Game 2: Dean 9, Norwich 8 (13 innings)

The second game turned into a marathon, with Norwich battling back from an early deficit before ultimately falling in heartbreaking fashion in the bottom of the 13th.

The Cadets opened the scoring in the first, as Medhurst stole third and came home to give Norwich a 1-0 lead.  Dean answered in the second with a two-run double to take its first lead of the contest, but Norwich surged back in the third.

Franus scored on an RBI single from Lussier to tie the game, before Swaine followed with a run-scoring single of his own.  Ringer then delivered another RBI knock, and Garza added yet another run-scoring single to cap a four-run inning and put Norwich ahead, 5-2.

The Cadets added two more in the fourth when Lussier singled home Franus and Medhurst, stretching the margin to 7-2.

Dean remained within striking distance and finally broke through in the seventh, erupting for five runs to even the contest at 7-7.

Neither side broke through again until the 13th. Norwich briefly pulled back in front in the top half, as Swaine singled home Sabasteanski to make it 8-7.

Dean answered in the bottom of the inning.  The Bulldogs first tied the game on an unearned run following a stolen-base sequence and an error, then ended the contest with a walk-off RBI single to claim the 9-8 win.

Norwich collected 19 hits in the nightcap, led by Medhurst, who went 4-for-6 with two runs scored.  Swaine finished 3-for-6 with two RBIs, while Sabasteanski added two hits and two runs.  Lussier drove in three runs on a 2-for-7 effort, and Ringer went 2-for-5 with an RBI and two walks.  Ohlsen also recorded two hits, while Tanis chipped in a pair of hits and scored once.

Jon Tetzlaff (Goshen, N.Y.) got the start and allowed two runs over two innings.  Isaac Parker (Jay, Maine) followed with three scoreless innings of relief, and Norwich received additional work out of the bullpen from Bryson Bush (Leonard, Texas), Jac Campbell (Havertown, Pa.), Carson Rath, and James Vinchetti (Cromwell, Conn.) in the extra-inning battle.

Norwich will look to bounce back in its next outing, as the Cadets step out of conference play to host St. Lawrence University in a single game on Wednesday, Apr. 22, at 3:30 p.m. on Garrity Field.