Mount St. Mary's never led in a 29-run barnburner until the final play of the game, when a wild pitch forced in the winning run in a 15-14 heartbreaker for Siena Baseball in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Three batters in, Siena (13-38, 7-14) led 3-0 on a three-run homer by
Vincent DiNicola. The Saints led by as many as five runs on a pair of occassions – 6-1 in the third and 10-5 in the sixth – but could never put Mount St. Mary's (24-24, 10-11) away.
Every time Siena seemingly secured a comfortable lead, the Mount answered. The teams traded 4-2-2 line scores in the sixth through eighth innings, as the Mountaineers matched the Saints each step of the way down the stretch.
The Mount then loaded the bases with nobody out in the ninth, spelling trouble. A fielder's choice knotted the score, while a wild pitch plated the winning run as Mount St. Mary's walked off in the rubber game. Each of Siena's last three losses have come by a run, including two via walk-off.
DiNicola homered and drove in five runs for the Saints, while
Donovan Montgomery added three hits and his first home run of the season. Siena has now belted 45 home runs this spring – the fifth highest single-season total in program history – and most in a season since hitting a program-record 63 homers in 2010.
Freshmen
Nick Bergamotto and
Gavin Thorburn each scored three runs, with Thorburn connecting for a pair of doubles and three RBI.
The Saints close out the 2023 regular season with a four-game homestand next week. Siena hosts Fairleigh Dickinson in their non-conference finale Tuesday at 1 p.m. at Connors Park.
