BEVERLY — (Video) Junior Nicolas Notarangelo (Taunton) drilled a tie-breaking solo home run in the sixth inning, and the No. 4/8 Endicott College baseball team scored five late runs to pull away from Ithaca College for a 7-3 victory on Saturday at North Field, sweeping the best-of-three NCAA Super Regional set and clinching its first trip to the NCAA Division III College World Series. Postgame Endicott press conference is posted below
WP (2-0): Jordan Gottesman (Acton) — 1.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 KLP (8-5): Colin Leyner (Edison, N.J.) — 6+ IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Junior Nicholas Cannata (Marlborough, Conn.) and Leyner locked up in a pitcher’s duel, as Leyner faced the minimum through three innings and Cannata yielded only one base runner over the opening four frames.
Sophomore Robbie Wladkowski‘s (Norwood) sac fly in the fourth put Endicott ahead. With a pair in scoring position in the fifth, Ithaca sophomore Riley Brawdy (Rome, N.Y.) singled to plate the tying run, but senior center fielder Caleb Shpur (East Canaan, Conn.) cut down a second runner at the plate.
With two down in the sixth, Notarangelo’s long drive to right center kept carrying over the fence for the go-ahead home run. Freshman TJ Liponis (Scarborough, Maine) placed a perfect safety squeeze down the first base line in the seventh before graduate student Joseph Millar (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) knocked a sac fly to make it 4-1.
Junior Ethan Rothstein (Demarest, N.J.) doubled just inside the left field line, beyond diving third baseman Wladkowski’s extended glove, to scored Brawdy in the eighth inning, and an RBI groundout brought Ithaca within a single run.
The Gulls countered with three runs on two hits in the home half, keyed by junior John Mulready‘s (Peabody) two-run single. Endicott clinched the regional title when Notarangelo secured a diving catch in foul territory in left field.
MacDougall, Mulready, and Notarangelo all had two hits for the Gulls, while senior Jake Nardone (Wakefield, Mass.) drew a pair of walks. Brawdy had a hit and two walks for the Bombers, and junior Colin Shashaty (Northport, N.Y.) finished 2-for-4.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- While appearing in its eighth NCAA Tournament, Endicott hosted an NCAA Super Regional for the second straight season, having qualified for the round for the first time last spring. The Gulls won the first two Super Regional contests in program history this weekend.
- Ithaca, which played its fifth straight game against a nationally-ranked opponent, also competed in an NCAA Super Regional for the second consecutive year.
- With his school-record 80th hit of the spring, Shpur snapped a tie with Endicott Hall of Famer and 2014 D3baseball.com Player of the Year Tad Gold ’14 (Martha’s Vineyard, Mass.), whose prior mark came nine seasons ago.
- MacDougall rapped his 19th double of the season, breaking another school record held by Gold.
- Millar drew his 95th career walk, tying Aaron Santos’ ’10 (Cambridge, Mass.) program standard.
- Notarangelo’s tie-breaking home run was his eighth career postseason round-tripper, five of which have come in just 13 NCAA Tournament contests. He homered in each of the last three NCAA games at North Field.
- Ithaca, which was one of three unranked teams remaining among the 16 competing in Super Regionals, made its 50th NCAA Tournament appearance, having won national championships in 1980 and 1988.
- Endicott is 49-4 at North Field since late 2021, and with a 22-1 mark this season matched last year’s program record for home victories.
- In addition to Notarangelo’s game-ending diving catch, the contest featured a handful of stellar defensive plays. Ithaca senior third baseman Matt Fabian (Toronto, Ontario) made a sprawling play on a grounder to end the second before starting a 5-4-3 double play to cap the following frame.
- In the Bomber half of the fourth, Shpur turned in a diving catch toward left center. Cannata helped himself by tracking a foul pop all the way to the backstop in the sixth inning before sliding in for the catch.
WHAT’S NEXT
Endicott (45-7) heads to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the College World Series, which begins on June 2. All contests will be played at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Ithaca’s (31-16) season has come to an end.
(Photo Credit – David Le ’10)
