Delaware Captures First CAA Baseball Title
Rob Washburn
CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL |
BOX SCORE |
HIGHLIGHTS |
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WILMINGTON, N.C. (May 27, 2017) – Fourth-seeded Delaware generated all the offense it would need with a nine-run first inning and defeated #2 UNCW, 10-3, to capture its first CAA Baseball Championship on Saturday afternoon at Brooks Field.
The Blue Hens (34-21) advance to the NCAA Baseball Championship for the first time since 2001 when it was a member of the America East Conference. Delaware, which out-scored opponents 38-14 while rolling through the tournament with an unblemished 4-0 record, had made three previous trips to the CAA title game and had twice fallen to the Seahawks.
The Blue Hens received a sensational pitching performance from sophomore reliever Kyle Hinton (2-0), who allowed only four hits and one run over the final 7.0 innings and struck out three. After giving up a homer to the first batter he faced, the right-hander retired 15 consecutive Seahawks.
Delaware scored its 10 runs on just seven hits. Nick Patten was 2-for-3 with two RBI’s and Doug Trimble was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a run driven in.
For UNCW, senior Casey Golden was 3-for-4 with a pair of solo homers. The CAA Player of the Year finished with a league-high 21 home runs, which tied the Seahawks’ single-season record.
The game started well for UNCW as Golden led off the game with his first homer of the day, but quickly turned as Delaware sent 14 men to the plate in the bottom of the first against three different Seahawks’ pitchers.
Kevin Mohollen singled to open the frame and tied the contest on Calvin Scott’s RBI base hit. After loading the bases, Trimble drove in a run with a single, another scored on a groundout and Nick Tierno’s two-RBI single put Delaware ahead 5-1. Aided by two walks, a hit batter and an error, the Blue Hens piled on four more runs, with Patten knocking in a pair with his second single of the inning.
The Seahawks picked up a run in the second as Ryan Jeffers singled and scored on Mason Berne’s double to the gap in right-center. Delaware responded in the bottom half of the inning when Trimble drew the first of back-to-back walks and came home on a groundout.
Golden’s second homer of the game to start the third brought the Seahawks within 10-3.
Delaware shortstop Jeremy Ake was chosen as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player and he was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Patten, Hinton, Jordan Glover, Ron Marinaccio and Brian Mayer. Receiving all-tournament honors from UNCW were Golden, Jeffers, Alex Royalty and Logan Beehler. Rounding out the squad were Carter Love and Logan McRae from the College of Charleston.