Game Gets Away Late in Loss to Central Connecticut

Saturday, March 19

Auburndale, Fla. / Lake Myrtle Park

11:00 AM

Dartmouth College

3-8

Central Connecticut

5-4

Central Conn. State

Dartmouth

Connor Bertsch

Photo by: Mike Janes

Game Gets Away Late in Loss to Central Connecticut

3/19/2022 6:47:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (HTML)Box Score

The baseball team gave up six runs in the final four frames in the 9-2 defeat

By: Rick Bender

AUBURNDALE, Fla. — What was a tight 3-2 game entering the sixth turned into a 9-2 defeat for the Dartmouth baseball team as Central Connecticut State (5-4) handed the Big Green (3-8) their fifth straight defeat. The Blue Devils banged out 12 hits with three home runs in a balanced attack against four Dartmouth pitchers, scoring seven of their nine runs with two outs.

Dominic Niman (2-0) earned the victory on the mound for CCSU, allowing both runs (one earned) over five frames on six hits and three walks while striking out five. Jake Neuman took over to start the sixth and shut down Dartmouth over the final four innings on just two hits and a free pass to go with three punchouts for his first save of the season.

It was the Big Green who took an early lead, however, after senior starter Nathan Skinner struck out the side in order to start the game. Back-to-back one-out singles by sophomore Tyler Cox and junior Kolton Freeman led to a run-scoring single with two gone by senior Kade Kretzschmar.

That lead was instantly wiped out in the top of the second when Noah Martinez deposited a 1-1 pitch over the fence for his fourth home run of the season, snapping a string of 12 consecutive scoreless innings for the Big Green hurler. Central Connecticut State added two more off the right-hander in the third on Dan Covino's RBI double and a single by Martinez to plate Covino.

Kretzschmar drove in the other Dartmouth run in the bottom half of the third with another base hit. His two-out single brought home junior Connor Bertsch, who had extended his hitting streak to eight games with a single of his own and took second on a passed ball.

Skinner (1-1) allowed just one more base runner until he was lifted after five innings of work, leaving him with a line of three runs surrendered on six safeties and a base on balls while fanning five.

The bullpen had some control issues, walking six batters over the next three innings that helped the Blue Devils push four more runs across the plate. Elliot Good stroked a two-out, two-run single in the sixth after the bases were loaded on free passes, and CCSU tallied another run in the seventh on a double sandwiched between two walks and a wild pitch.

After another two-out run in the eighth, the Blue Devils smacked a pair of solo blasts in the ninth, courtesy of Mike Torniero and Joe Rios, the first of the year for each.

Cox, Freeman and Kretzschmar all had two hits apiece to lead the Big Green offense.

Four Blue Devils had rapped out two hits as well, including Rios who entered the game in the sixth on defense with a double and his four-bagger.

Dartmouth will attempt to avenge a 20-6 loss to Bradley on Sunday morning with first pitch slated for 10 a.m. at Lake Myrtle Park.