The Misericordia baseball team live to see another game as they defeated Babson, 12-7, in the Mid-Atlantic Regional, Monday morning at PeoplesBank Park in York, PA. The two teams will play again shortly, with the winner crowned regional champions and punching their ticket to Appleton, Wisconsin for the College World Series.
Alec Iurato had two hits and three runs batted in and Parker Abate and Tyler Holzapfel each had three hits and two RBI. Sean Lyons also had two hits and two RBI and two runs scored.
Drake Koch started the game on three days rest and threw six innings, striking out three while allowing four runs. Dan Zurowski came out of the bullpen and pitched three scoreless innings to earn the save.
The Cougars jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first as Abate and Holzapfel singled to set up first and third for Iurato, who laid down a squeeze bunt to knock in the game's first run.
After Koch worked two scoreless innings to begin the game, the Beavers tied the game in the third on a triple and sacrifice fly.
As they have done many times this tournament, Misericordia came right back in the next inning. Santo Guinta reached on an error and Conor Smith walked to lead off the inning. Lyons then drove them both in with a double to right-center field and came around to score himself as Kenny Jarema followed with an RBI base knock into the right-field corner.
Babson got a run back in the fifth, but the Cougars responded with three runs in the top of the sixth. Jarema walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch and then swapped places with Abate, as the junior ripped a double to make it 5-2. Abate followed by stealing third and when the throw went over the third-baseman's head, he came into score as well. Iurato wrapped up the inning as lined a single up the middle to drive in Holzapfel, who had walked earlier in the inning.
Misericordia added two big insurance runs in the seventh as Holzapfel and Iurato each delivered RBI singles.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Beavers got back into the game by scoring five runs on a two-run double and three-run home run off the left field foul pole. Dan Zurowski came in out of the bullpen after the home run and recorded three straight outs to preserve the lead.
Again, however, the Cougars responded in the next inning with three runs on just three hits and five stolen bases. Boylan, Abate and Holzapfel were the run producers in the inning for Misericordia on two singles and a sacrifice fly.
Zurowski came back out for the eighth and ninth and threw two more scoreless innings to earn the save and a shot at the Mid-Atlantic Regional title.
