Worcester, Mass. (April 9) -- The Assumption College baseball team earned a 5-4 walk-off win over Southern Connecticut State University in Northeast-10 Conference divisional action on Tuesday afternoon.

Senior Nick Napoli (Medford, Mass. / Boston College) hit a game-winning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the tenth inning after Assumption tied the score in the bottom of the ninth, to deliver the Greyhounds the victory.

Junior Cody Rocha (Fall River, Mass. / BMC Durfee) earned the win, pitching six innings of relief while allowing two earned runs on two hits. He struck out five while allowing three walks and one unearned run.

Sophomore Zack LaRosa (West Hartford, Conn. / Conard) got the start for Assumption, working four innings of three-hit ball. He allowed one unearned run while striking out five and walking two in the no-decision.

Tyler Albrect took the loss for SCSU, pitching two thirds of an inning while allowed two hits and the go-ahead run in the final inning.

SCSU struck in the fourth inning as the Owls capitalized on two hits and a Greyhound error to take the first lead of the game.

After an error to start the inning, the Owls sacrificed to advance the runner over to second base.
Following a strikeout by LaRosa, SCSU got on the board with a single up the middle. The Owls got another single and a walk, but LaRosa ended the inning on a fly ball to get out of a based loaded jam.

The Greyhounds answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 3-1 lead. Senior Shane Keddy (Worcester, Mass. / Worcester Tech) started the inning with a walk. Following a pop out, the Greyhounds strung together three-consecutive singles by Billy Johnson (Auburn, Mass. / Holy Name), Greg O'Donnell (Northbridge, Mass. / Northbridge), and Joe Lopes (Warwick, R.I. / Bishop Hendricken). O'Donnell and Lopes each had RBI singles to give the Greyhounds a 2-1 advantage.

Following a fielder's choice by Napoli, graduate student Ben Benigno (Trumbull, Conn. / Trumbull) had a two-out RBI single up the middle to drive in O'Donnell and extend the Greyhound lead to two.

Rocha relieved LaRosa in the fifth and gave one run back in his first inning of work as the Greyhounds committed two errors in the frame. The run scored on a throwing error by Rocha himself, cutting the Greyhound lead to one, 3-2.

After a scoreless sixth inning, the Owls scored two runs on one hit and three walks to take a 4-3 lead after seven innings. Rocha walked the first two batters he faced to start the inning. After a sacrifice bunt advanced the runners to second and third, Rocha issued this third walk of the inning, this time intentional, to load the bases with one out.

The next batter, Michael Cleary, took advantage with a single through the left side to drive in two runs and give the Owls their first lead since the fourth inning.

Assumption went hitless in the seventh and eighth innings, sending the game to the ninth trailing by one run.

With one out, Benigno started the rally with an infield single. Junior Ysander Figueroa (Worcester, Mass. / Worcester Tech) pinch ran for Benigno, but was caught stealing to put two outs on the board and clear the bases. Senior Michael Filice (South Salem, N.Y. / John Jay CR) then pinch hit and reached base on a walk. Ryan Connelly (West Roxbury, Mass. / Boston Latin) entered the game to run for Filice. The next batter, Bret Clark (Bristol, Conn. / Bristol Central), was hit by a pitch to move Connelly into scoring position.

Keddy was the next man in line and the All-American candidate delivered with a game-tying single through the left side, his only hit of the day, scoring Connelly to even the score at four.

After Rocha worked a 1-2-3 top of the tenth inning, the Greyhounds came to bat in the bottom of the frame and continued their momentum from the previous inning. Johnson led off the inning with a single down the right field line.  After he was eliminated on a fielder's choice by O'Donnell, Lopes singled to right field, putting runners on the corners with one out.

The next batter, Napoli, delivered with a fly ball to deep center field. There was no play at the plate as O'Donnell crossed, giving the Greyhounds the 5-4 win and a divisional victory.

Assumption improves to 8-19 on the season with the win and 3-1 in Southwest Divisional play, while SCSU falls to 15-10-1 overall and 1-4 in divisional action. The Greyhounds will be back in action on Wednesday, April 10th against The College of Saint Rose in a divisional matchup at Rocheleau Field. The game will begin at 3:30 p.m. in Worcester, Mass.

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