Farmingdale, NY – A two-run home run tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, and a bases loaded single through the left side of the infield ended the Clarkson University Baseball team’s hopes of advancing to the NCAA New York Regional Championship game as the Golden Knights dropped a heartbreaking 11-10 decision to Rensselaer Saturday afternoon.
The Golden Knights finished the season at 23-21 overall and finished third in the regional tournament, while Rensselaer improved to 37-11 and needs just one win to move on to the Division III College World Series in Appleton, WI.
Things started off well for the Golden Knights as they produced a 9-2 lead through the first three and a half innings. Behind 1-0 through two frames, Clarkson scored six in the top of the third. David Kinney (Mexico, NY) delivered a two-run single and two batters later Matt Holiday (Syracuse, NY) came just a few feet away from a grand slam to center field, settling for a two-run double. Steve Magovney (Watertown, NY) followed with an RBI-groundout and the Knights were up 6-1. Rensselaer responded with a run in the bottom of the third, but Clarkson got three more runs on a three-run shot by Kinney for a 9-2 advantage.
Rensselaer slowly chipped away with three runs in the fourth to make it 9-5, and Clarkson picked up a run in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Jerry Coleman (Potsdam, NY), but the Red Hawks got two in the sixth and another in the seventh inning, making the score 10-8.
In the bottom of the ninth, Pat Reardon began the inning with a five-pitch walk, but Camden Mamigonian didn’t prove to be as patient, as he jumped on reliever Vince Baldwin’s (Catskill, NY) first pitch and sent a drive to left field for a two-run homer, tying the score 10-10. After back-to-back singles and a sacrifice bunt, the Knights intentionally walked the number eight hitter in Rensselaer’s lineup, creating a force situation at every base, but shortstop Tom Jebb singled through the infield for the walk-off hit.
Kinney finished the game with an impressive performance for a freshman, going 5-for-5 with five runs batted in. Cale Giroux (Cortland, NY) was 3-for-6, while Matt Holiday and Matt Giordano (Liverpool, NY) each added two hits.