Kalantzakos Delivers Near No-No, Sends Baseball to Second Straight NE10 Championship Game

Links: Box Score

SYRACUSE, N.Y.  – It was déjà vu on multiple accounts for the Merrimack College baseball program on Friday afternoon; not only did the Warriors win on the second day of NE10 Championship Weekend to reach their second straight conference championship game, sophomore Timmy Kalantzakos threw a complete game for the second time in as many seasons to punch the program's ticket. The Andover, Mass. native took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, relented just two hits overall against the host Le Moyne College Dolphins, and pitched Merrimack to a 5-2 victory at Onondaga Community College.

With the triumph, Merrimack moved within one victory of winning back-to-back league tournaments for the second time in school history and first time in more than two decades (1995, 1996). The program will also make a bid tomorrow to become the first defending champion to repeat since Franklin Pierce won three straight league tournaments from 2007-09. With one win Saturday, the Warriors will claim their fifth league championship in school history.

Kalantzakos was effective at keeping the ball in the infield for most of his outing, totaling 14 ground-ball outs. Merrimack's offense was aided by a pair of late-inning hits from juniors Thomas Joyce and Joey Porricelli to put the game away. The former roped a two-run double in the sixth inning that made it a 3-0 game, and the latter lined a two-out single with the bases loaded in the seventh that made it a five-run contest.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 5, Le Moyne 2
Records: Merrimack (28-18) | Le Moyne (24-24)
Location: Onondaga Community College | Syracuse, N.Y.    

2019 NE10 Championship Schedule
Tuesday, May 7th – First Round (single elimination)
Game 1:  #4 SW Southern Connecticut def. #1 SW Adelphi, 9-6
Game 2:  #3 SW Le Moyne def. #2 SW Pace, 2-1
Game 3:  #4 NE Franklin Pierce def. #1 NE SNHU, 3-2
Game 4:  #3 NE Merrimack def. #2 NE Bentley, 6-5

Thursday, May 9^th – Championship Weekend (double elimination)
All Games to be played at Onondaga Community College's Baseball Complex 
Game 5:  #3 NE Merrimack def. #4 SW Southern Connecticut, 8-1
Game 6:  #3 SW Le Moyne def. #4 NE Franklin Pierce, 16-2
Game 7:  #4 SW Southern Connecticut vs. #4 NE Franklin Pierce, 9-5

Friday, May 10^th
All Games to be played at Onondaga Community College's Baseball Complex 
Game 8:  #3 NE Merrimack def. #3 SW Le Moyne, 5-2
Game 9:  . #4 NE Franklin Pierce vs. #3 SW Le Moyne, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 11^th
All Games to be played at Onondaga Community College's Baseball Complex 
Game 10:  Game 9 winner vs. #3 NE Merrimack, 12 p.m.
Game 11:  If necessary

Rapid Recap

• Neither team mustered much of a threat through the first two innings, with only one baserunner reaching scoring position. Kalantzakos then worked out of a two-on-with-one-out jam in the top of the third, reaching across his body to snag a line drive destined to go up the middle to keep the game scoreless
• Kalantzakos worked through the first four innings without allowing a hit, and then Merrimack got on the board. Junior Nick Shumski drilled a leadoff double into right-center field and tagged up to reach third on a fly out to right. Senior Matthew Ronai fell behind 0-2 in his count with one out, but was able to lift a sacrifice fly into right field that have the Warriors a 1-0 edge
• Despite the effective pitching, Merrimack's lead remained at a single run entering the bottom of the sixth. That frame began with sophomore Michael Jamele being hit by a pitch and was followed by a five-pitch walk to Porricelli. Shumski moved both runners over with a sacrifice bunt, and Joyce followed with a first-pitch swinging double into right-center field that scored both baserunners
• From the last out in the third inning through the first out of the seventh, Kalantzakos retired 11 straight Dolphins. Le Moyne's first hit came on a single through the left side, but the second-year right-hander immediately ended the frame with a 4-6-3 twin killing
• Merrimack loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh following an eight-pitch walk to Jamele that moved sophomore Thomas Crowley and freshman Kurtis Stadnicki into scoring position. On the second pitch of his at-bat, Porricelli lined a single into left field that plated both Warriors in scoring position, and made Merrimack's lead insurmountable
• Despite allowing a two-out homer in the ninth, Kalantzakos ended the game on a line out to left that put Merrimack back in the Championship tilt

Top Performers // Notes

• WP: Kalantzakos (7-2) | LP: DuBord (1-3)
• Kalantzakos' Final Line (W): 9.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K  
• The sophomore starter nearly duplicated his effort one year ago on the second day of Championship Weekend, when the then-freshman tossed a complete game against Southern New Hampshire to avoid elimination and send Merrimack to the conference title game. Kalantzakos threw his team-leading 11^th quality start – and 11^th consecutive – to move into a tie for the team lead in wins
• The local product also tied classmate Vin Zappulla  and senior Cam Monagle for the team lead in victories; the trio are all tied for second in single-season history in wins
• The Warriors made the most of their five hits, with two of the five going for extra bases and both leading to runs. Shumski's leadoff two-bagger led to the team's first run while Joyce's sixth-inning double knocked in what proved to be the game-winning tally. Joyce hit his ninth of the season, as well, setting a new career high
• Merrimack picked up its 33^rd victory in NE10 Championship play, the second most in league history. The team recorded its ninth finals appearance as well, one shy of tying the NE10 high
• The Warriors will now have a chance of joining the 1990, 1995, 1996 and 2018 squads as NE10 Champions; a fifth league championship would tie the NE10 record, as well

Up Next:
Merrimack will now await the victor of Franklin Pierce and Le Moyne, who play in an elimination game on Friday evening at O.C.C. First pitch of tomorrow's championship game is set for 12 p.m. If needed, a winner-take-all second game would begin at approximately 3 p.m.