Baseball Clinches First Place at Southern Vermont

BENNINGTON, Vt. – The Mitchell College baseball team clinched first place in the NECC regular season standings on Saturday afternoon by splitting a doubleheader at Southern Vermont College, falling 4-1 in the first game before bouncing back for a 12-3 win in the nightcap.

Mitchell also earned the top seed and the right to host the 2011 NECC Baseball Championship. The top four teams in the regular season standings will qualify for the double-elimination tournament, which is set to run May 6-8. More details will be released once the tournament field has been determined.

Senior right-hander John Apostolo baffled the Mountaineers in the second game to earn the clinching victory. He struck out a season-high 12 batters and scattered five hits over 7.0 innings, allowing only one earned run to become the only pitcher in the NECC with a perfect 6-0 record in conference action.

Mitchell (19-7-1 overall, 14-3 NECC) and Southern Vermont (15-20 overall, 9-8 NECC) will wrap up regular season play with a single nine-inning game on Sunday, May 1 beginning at noon.

Game One – Southern Vermont 4, Mitchell 1

Southern Vermont's Devin Rhodes held the Mariners to one run on six hits in the opener, striking out seven while going the distance. Mitchell starter Paul Martinez took a 1-0 lead into the fifth before the Mountaineers rallied for four runs. Martinez finished with three strikeouts in 5.0 innings and allowed four runs on eight hits.

Mitchell scored its lone run in the top of the fifth. Senior Drew Rossi led off the frame with a double and moved over to third on a sacrifice bunt by classmate John McGarry. Senior Jeff Perillo then brought Rossi home with a sacrifice fly to center to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead.

The Mountaineers scored four in the bottom of the inning to take the lead for good. Martinez didn't help his own cause, issuing three walks and hitting a batter to keep the inning alive.

Rossi and senior Carlos Hughes each finished with a pair of hits for the Mariners. Apostolo went 0-for-2 with a walk at the plate and had his 19-game hitting streak snapped.

Game Two – Mitchell 12, Southern Vermont 3

Apostolo got back on track in the second game, delivering a RBI single in the first inning to put the Mariners on the scoreboard. Mitchell plated a total of three runs in the frame as junior Felix Colarte followed with a RBI ground out and sophomore Osmer Collado drove in Apostolo with a single to right.

Apostolo got off to a rough start on the hill, allowing three runs on three hits in the first inning as Southern Vermont tied the game at 3-3. The Mitchell defense also committed an error during the frame to add fuel to the fire.

The Mariners responded with three more runs in the second to get back on track. The rally started with two outs when freshman Anthony Santiago and Apostolo each singled, and Colarte followed with a base hit to plate a run. After a SVC error kept the inning alive, Hughes and junior Gus Maclao each drew bases-loaded walks to bring in two runs.

Apostolo took the 6-3 lead and quickly settled into a groove on the mound. He retired 18 of the last 21 batters he faced and allowed only two more hits over the final six innings.

Colarte added another RBI single in a two-run third inning, and the Mariners put up four runs in the fourth to extend the lead to 11-3. Mitchell tacked on the final run of the game in the sixth on a RBI double by Santiago, his fourth hit of the contest. Colarte finished the game with three hits and three RBI while Hughes and Rossi both added a pair of hits.