FRANKLIN, Mass. – April 16, 2023 – The Dean College baseball team hit a pair of walk-off home runs to earn a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader sweep over Anna Maria. The Bulldogs won game one 4-3 in the bottom of the seventh and followed with a 13-12 triumph in the bottom of the 10th of game two.
Dean (8-21, 5-7 GNAC) plays at Nichols on Wednesday at 3 p.m. Anna Maria (15-14, 9-3 GNAC), who entered the day tied for the top spot in the conference, will travel to Worcester State on Wednesday for a 3:30 p.m. first pitch.
GAME ONE – Dean 4, Anna Maria 3
Anna Maria scored a couple in the opening frame with the first coming on a ground out by Jarrod Marifiote (Framingham, Mass.). The AMCATS plated their second run when Kosta Drosidis (Holden, Mass.) hit an RBI single to left.
The AMCATS took a 3-0 lead in the second on an RBI single by James Powers (Folsom, Calif.).
The Bulldogs struck for a pair in the fourth to cut into the deficit. After senior
Owen Liscio (Norwalk, Conn.) reached on a double, he came around to score on an error later in the inning. Senior
Brian Dovidio (Ramsey, N.J.) then scored on an RBI double by sophomore
Seth Cruz (East Freetown, Mass.).
In the bottom of the fifth, the Bulldogs tied the game at 3-3 when sophomore
Cam Watkins (East Haddam, Conn.) hit an RBI triple that scored first-year
Nick Amendolara (Bayville, N.Y.), who reached on a double.
In the bottom of the seventh, senior
Andrew Sullivan (Agawam, Mass.) stepped in for the Bulldogs and ended the game with hit his first collegiate home run over the right field wall.
Senior
Kyle Simpson (Prospect, Conn.) earned the victory for the Bulldogs with five innings of scoreless relief.
Powers went 3 for 3 to lead the Anna Maria hitters.
Cruz and Watkins had two hits apiece for Dean.
GAME TWO – Dean 13, Anna Maria 12 (10 inn.)
In a wild game two, that featured at least one run scored in each of the 10 innings played, the Bulldogs rallied from down 8-0 in the first three innings to comeback for a thrilling 13-12 walk-off victory in the 10th.
Cam Watkins delivered the game-winning long ball over the left field fence on the first pitch he saw to lead off the bottom of the 10th.
The AMCATS struck first once again in their first at-bat of game two, scoring six times on three hits and an error.
Anna Maria added single runs in the second and third to take an 8-0 lead.
Dean got on the board in the fourth on an
Owen Liscio RBI single.
After the AMCATS answered with a run in the top of the fifth, Dean responded by scoring five runs on five hits in the bottom half to pull within 9-6. Senior
Brayden McLaughlin (Forest Grove, Ore.) and Liscio each had two-run singles in the inning.
The Bulldogs took their first lead of the game with four runs in the sixth to go on top 10-9.
Andrew Sullivan knocked in a pair with a double to the left center gap.
The lone run of the seventh inning came in Dean's half of the frame. Dovidio came around to score on an error after
Seth Cruz (East Freetown, Mass.) put down a sac bunt.
Anna Maria scored three unearned runs in the top of the eighth to regain a 12-11 lead. Brady Aylward (Southington, Conn.) had a two-run single to put the AMCATS in front.
In the bottom of the ninth,
Andrew Sullivan beat out a potential double play ball which allowed Dovidio to score the tying run and send the game into extra innings.
After first-year
Jared Dussman (Maplewood, N.J.) tossed his second shut down inning in a row, to eventually pick up the game two victory,
Cam Watkins came through in the bottom of the 10th with his first home run of the season to end the game.
Dovidio finished 4 for 5 with three runs scored. Sullivan was 2 for 5 with four RBIs and three runs. Liscio went 2 for 2 with three RBIs and three walks.
