SALISBURY, Md. — The Hobart baseball team fell to eighth-ranked Salisbury in a heartbreaking 4–3 defeat in 12 innings in the Salisbury Regional Final on Sunday at Williams Stadium. The Statesmen outhit the Sea Gulls 14-10, but the home team sealed the win with a walk-off single to center.
Hobart took the lead in the fourth inning as sophomore
Jack Farnen singled up the middle, followed by junior
Cole Conte's single through the right side. Sophomore
Aidan Davenport advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt, setting the stage for first-year
Quinn Dashefsky, who delivered a two-run single down the left-field line.
In the seventh inning, first-year
Jack O'Neil singled and then stole second base. He advanced to third on a groundout and scored on senior
Will Jones's sacrifice fly, extending Hobart's lead to 3–0.
Senior starting pitcher
Aaron Forgues kept Salisbury's potent lineup in check through the first six innings, scattering five hits while striking out one and walking one.
With Forgues out of the game, Salisbury finally got on the board in the bottom of the seventh. Ethan Ruiz smacked a two-run double to right center, making it a one-run game. Jackson Inman's sacrifice fly tied the game through seven innings.
In the 10th inning,
Cole Conte produced a one-out infield single and took second on a wild pitch, but a strikeout and a flyout ended the threat. In the 11th, Salisbury stranded two men, but in the bottom of the 12th, the Sea Gulls' used a leadoff walk and a throwing error to put runners on first and second. SU (35-9) bunted the runners up a station and Jake Witter drove in the winning run.
First-year
Joe Dunham pitched the final five innings for the Statesmen, surrendering just the one run on three hits and three walks while striking out three.
Junior
Sean Garvin and Conte both recorded three hits, including a double.
GAME NOTES
- Conte, Garvin and Dunham represented Hobart on this weekend's All-Tournament Team.
- The Statesmen broke more than two dozen individual and team season records this year, including the team marks for wins, hits, doubles, and runs.
- This was Hobart's second-ever NCAA tournament appearance and first since 1992.
- Hobart finished the season with a record of 32-15.
