Baseball dropped its series against Navy over the weekend, losing two out of three. On Sunday, they lost both games of the doubleheader, 9-4 and 5-3. On Monday, they battled through 13 innings to win 5-4.
In the opening game of the doubleheader, the Bison got out to a hot start. John Calabrese ’28 and Zach Selfon ’27 got on base with a walk and a single, respectively, before Andrew Swenson ’27 knocked in a run off an error by the shortstop. They would tack on another in the next inning with a Calabrese double to extend the lead to 3-0.
The Midshipmen started to creep back in during the fourth, scoring one, before breaking the game open in the fifth. With one out and the bases loaded, a sacrifice fly to right field tied the game up.
A walk and a single to left field would give the Midshipmen a 5-3 lead before the Bison were able to get off the field. The Midshipmen batters did not relent, utilizing three singles to put three more runs on the board. The Orange and Blue would take one back in the bottom of the seventh but ultimately fell 9-4.
Game two followed a similar pattern as the Bison opened the scoring with a Garrett Mathias ’29 home run in the second inning. Brady Hoar ’29 got the start on the mound and pitched four shutout innings before the Midshipmen broke through in the fifth inning with a home run to left field. Navy would hit a two-out RBI double to take a 2-1 lead before the inning ended.
The Bison responded in the bottom half of the inning as Lleyton Coupe ’28 tripled to score Selfon and tie the ballgame. With two out, Billy Fluharty ’27 would knock a single to right field to put the Orange and Blue ahead. The Midshipmen scored three in the eighth inning to give themselves a two-run lead, which they would hold, taking the second game of the series.
In the series finale, Navy flipped the switch, being the ones to take an early lead, scoring off a double to right field in the first inning. The Bison responded quickly as Calabrese’s fly ball to center field scored Fluharty to even the score in the bottom half of the inning. The Midshipmen answered back in the very next inning, breaking open a 2-1 lead with an RBI single.
Calabrese evened the score in the bottom of the third, hitting a single to left field, scoring Michael Trommer ’26 from second base. In the fourth inning, it was Trommer’s turn to knock in a run, hitting a triple to right field, scoring Fluharty and giving the Bison a 3-2 lead. The next inning, Calabrese earned his third RBI of the day as he scored Mathias using another sacrifice fly, extending the lead to 4-2. Navy would creep back, scoring in the sixth and seventh innings with a single and a home run, respectively.
The two teams would remain deadlocked and head into extra innings. The Bison would have their chances, getting close in the 10th and 12th innings, stranding five runners between the two innings.
In the bottom of the 13th, Selfon came to the plate with two outs and pinch runner Chris Morabito ’27 on first. Selfon popped the 2-1 pitch into left field behind the shortstop, who back-pedaled and ultimately missed the ball. Morabito was waved home by the third base coach and scored, giving the Bison a walk-off 5-4 win.
Baseball continues its season in a three-game series against Lehigh on May 2-3 to close out the regular season.
