There might be an ‘END’ in Endicott, but there is no Q-U-I-T.
Down to its last six outs and trailing Pomona-Pitzer by three runs, Endicott College — the top-seeded team in the Division III College World Series — scored four runs in the final two innings and defeated the Sagehens, 7-6, in an elimination game at Classic Park on June 1.
Nicolas Notarangelo scored from third base on Robbier Wladkowski’s grounder to short to give Endicott the win and keep the 47-3 Gulls alive in the eight-team tournament as they avoided going 0-2 after going 46-2 in the regular season.
“We took a punch in the mouth early,” Notorangelo said. “We did a great job scrapping, clawing and fighting back. Pomona is a great team. They showed that today. But as Kevin Millar said, ‘Don’t let us win tomorrow.’ ”
PHOTOS: Pomona-Pitzer vs. Endicott NCAA Division III World Series baseball, June 1, 2024
Cast into the consolation bracket via a 7-2 loss to eighth-seeded Lynchburg on May 31, Gulls coach Bryan Haley said he was “excited” to see how his team would show its fight in the consolation game early the next day. But when Endicott fell back, 6-2, after four innings, many at Classic Park or tuning in around the nation felt the projected champs to be a dead stick.
“They’ve been in a lot of different situations,” Haley said. “There’s never any panic.”
Endicott pulled within a run a 6-5 in the eighth when John Mulready doubled in T.J. Liponis and pinch-hitter Elijah Moses singled in James Benestad.
Down by a run in the bottom of the ninth, Dylan Pacheco led off with a double and was sacrificed to third. Pomona-Pitzer intentionally walked Brendan O’Neil and Liponis to load the bases and set up a force-out at home or a double-play situation.
Wladowski, a junior, ripped the first pitch he saw from Eric Prough up the middle. Shortstop Greg Pierantonio, a freshman, dove for the stop, but his hurried throw to the plate pulled catcher Peter Savas wide, allowing Notarangelo to score and set off a wild celebration in front of the home dugout.
“He made a great diving play just to get to the ball,” Sagehens coach Frank Pericolosi said. “That ball was hard it. It looked like his feet slipped out from under him a little bit when he made the throw.”
The Sagehends finish the season 37-14, an improvement over their 21-19 record last season en route to their first appearance in the Division III College World Series. Pierantoni had three hits to lead his team, while Nate Jakobs had two.
“We just came up a little short at the end,” Pericolosi said. “We were in position to win, but they made some plays at the end.”
The win keeps a dangerous Endicott team in the tournament. They play the loser of Lynchburg and Misericordia at 11 a.m. on June 2, with the winner advancing and the loser going home.
“Our job was to win four games in a row and to get to that championship series and kind of wipe the slate clean,” Haley said. “This is just Checkmark No. 1 of the four we need to do that.”
