NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The sixth-seeded Norwich University baseball team kept its postseason run alive on Saturday morning, edging second-seeded University of Saint Joseph (Conn.), 4-3, in a must-win Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Pod B elimination game at the USJ Baseball Field in West Hartford, Conn.
With the victory, Norwich remains alive in the conference tournament and advances to face third-seeded Saint Joseph's College of Maine on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. in Game 5B. The loser of that contest will be eliminated, while the winner will move on to face seventh-seeded Lasell University at 2:00 p.m. in Game 6B after the Lasers continued their own postseason surge with an 11-5 win over Saint Joseph's College of Maine in Saturday's other Pod B game.
Should Norwich win both games on Sunday, the Cadets and Lasers would meet again on Monday, with the final date, time, and location still to be determined, to decide the pod winner and who advances to next weekend's GNAC Championship Series.
Norwich answered one of the biggest challenges of its season with a composed and timely effort, collecting 14 hits, overcoming a sixth-inning deficit, and getting key innings out of the bullpen to eliminate the Pod B host Blue Jays.
Michael Sabasteanski (Ashburn, Va.) led the Cadets offensively with a huge 3-for-4 performance and all three Norwich RBIs, while
Geffen Franus (Leesburg, Va.) added two hits and scored once.
Jack Medhurst (Thousand Oaks, Calif.),
Domenic Swaine (Leominster, Mass.), and
Kyle Tanis (Shelburne, Vt.) each recorded two hits, and
Kevin Ohlsen (Shirley, N.Y.) scored the go-ahead run in the seventh.
Norwich struck first in the opening inning. Medhurst reached and eventually came around to score on a single to left center by Sabasteanski, giving the Cadets an early 1-0 edge.
The Cadets added to the lead in the third. Franus crossed the plate on another Sabasteanski single, this time up the middle, as Norwich moved in front 2-0.
Jon Tetzlaff (Goshen, N.Y.) helped preserve that advantage through the early innings, working into the fifth while allowing just one run. University of Saint Joseph broke through in the bottom of the fifth on a sacrifice fly, trimming the Norwich lead to 2-1.
The Blue Jays then moved in front during the sixth. A bases-loaded walk tied the game, and a fielder's choice moments later allowed the go-ahead run to score, putting the hosts up 3-2.
Norwich did not let the momentum slip.
In the top of the seventh, Tanis and Ohlsen both came around to score as the Cadets reclaimed the lead. Franus brought home the tying run after reaching on a fielder's choice, and Sabasteanski followed once again with the decisive swing, lining a single to center to plate Ohlsen and hand Norwich a 4-3 advantage.
That was enough for the Norwich pitching staff to close the door.
Peter Idleman (Mequon, Wis.) turned in one of his most important relief outings of the season, earning the win after tossing 3.2 scoreless innings. Idleman limited the Blue Jays to three hits over the final stretch and helped strand late traffic as Norwich protected its one-run lead to the finish.
Tetzlaff started and gave the Cadets 4.1 innings, allowing one run on six hits with two walks and one strikeout.
Isaac Parker (Jay, Maine) bridged the middle innings before Idleman entered and stabilized the game.
Norwich finished with 14 hits to 10 for the Blue Jays and turned a key double play defensively. Sabasteanski drove in all four runs, Medhurst reached base three times with a hit and two walks, and the Cadets continued to show the resilience that has defined their late-season push.
Saturday's win also sets up a rematch with Saint Joseph's College of Maine, which handed Norwich a 12-2 setback in Friday's opening pod game in Standish. This time, the stakes will be even higher, with the Cadets needing another win to extend their season into Sunday's second game against Lasell.
