Delaware's Norm Donkin had two hits against Elon.
Delaware Rides Vila To 4-1 Victory Over Elon
Rob Washburn
Boxscore |
Highlights
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. (May 22, 2015) – Freshman left-hander Colman Vila tossed 7.1 innings of one-hit ball to help fifth-seeded Delaware keep its season alive with a 4-1 win over fourth-seeded Elon in Game 6 of the 2015 CAA Baseball Championship on Friday morning.
The Blue Hens, who advance to Friday’s 5:00 p.m. elimination contest against No. 3 seed Northeastern, moved to 25-23 on the year.
Vila (2-1), who was making just his fourth start of the year, was sensational on the hill for Delaware. He took a no-hitter into the seventh and retired 12 in a row at one point. The southpaw finished with three strikeouts.
The Blue Hens were led offensively by senior Norm Donkin and sophomore Tyler Dean, who each collected two hits and drove in one run in the victory. Seniors Ty Warrington and Brock Niggebrugge also chipped in two hits as well, with Warrington scoring once and Niggebrugge scoring twice.
The Phoenix, appearing in their first-ever CAA Baseball Championship, finishes the year with a 25-29 record. Senior Ryan Cooper and sophomore Nick Zammarelli accounted for the team’s two hits, with Cooper driving in the lone run on an RBI single in the eighth.
EU senior starter Lucas Bakker (5-7) was tagged with the loss after giving up eight hits and three runs over 4.1 frames.
Delaware opened the scoring in third after Niggebrugge singled to center and then moved to second on a wild pitch. Dean followed with a single to right, moving Niggebrugge to third. Zach Lopes grounded into a double play, but the run came across to make it 1-0.
In the fifth, Warrington started a two-run inning with a double to left-center. Niggebrugge followed and came through again for the Hens. He laid down a great bunt that was fielded by Bakker, but his throw skipped past the first basemen for an error, allowing Warrington to come around from second.
Two batters later, with runners on the corner and one down, Donkin smacked a single up the middle to give UD a 3-0 advantage.
The Blue Hens added their fourth run in the sixth. Dean reached base on a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded, plating Calvin Scott, who drew a leadoff walk to start the inning.
The Phoenix found the scoreboard in the eighth after Vila walked two straight batters with one out. He was replaced by fellow lefty Taylor Mahoney, who got the first batter he faced to fly out, before Cooper came through with a two-out poke to right-center to bring home Brett Guba.