May 24, 2011
Box Score
Coach Paul | Nick
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy baseball team claimed the 2011 Patriot League Championship with a thrilling 5-3 victory over Army in the decisive game three of the series on Tuesday afternoon at Max Bishop Stadium. The title is the first for Navy since 2002 and the sixth in program history - the most by any team in the conference.
"It's a great feeling - I couldn't be prouder of our team this year," said Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "The last couple years have been tough for us, and to be fortunate enough to win the regular season and follow it up with a tournament championship, I think says a lot about our guys, and the leadership we have from our six seniors."
The win gives Navy, now 33-23-1, the Patriot League's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The tournament field will be announced on Monday at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN.
Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth inning, Navy loaded the bases with one out and pushed across three runs to take the lead for good.
"We've been very good at hanging around and waiting for an opportunity, and I think we did that today," said Kostacopoulos. "We've been that kind of team all year - just waiting for a chance to get ahead and we were able to do that today."
After singles by Dave Milanes and Jeff Bland, Army reliever Gunnar Carroll walked Greg Dupell to load the bases with one out. Nick Driscoll then sent a ball toward Army shortstop Clint Moore, who backhanded the ball and tried to flip it to second baseman Zach Price. Moore nearly got the ball to Price, but it dropped short of his glove, allowing Milanes to score and keep the bases loaded.
The next batter, Andrew Hahn, drove a ball to Price at second base, who threw it to Moore for the force play at second in what looked like it might be the first out of an eventual double play. But Moore's throw to first baseman Joey Henshaw sailed high, bringing in both Bland and Dupell to give Navy a 4-3 lead.
"Our bullpen is what kept us in the game to that point," said Driscoll. "Then we were able to get our leadoff guys on and put it together."
Preston Gainey entered in relief of starter Wes Olson with one out in the fifth, and after a walk put runners on the corners with two outs, Gainey retired the next two hitters to keep it a two-run game.
"Getting out of the fifth when they had two runners on base was a huge spot in the game for us," said Kostacopoulos.
In the top of the sixth, Gainey allowed a leadoff single, but then struck out the next three hitters to set up Navy's momentum-changing bottom of the inning.
After taking the lead in the sixth, Navy added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh, courtesy of Alex Azor. With Dylan Wheeler on first base after being hit by a pitch, Azor followed two batters later with a blistering double down the right field line, bringing in Wheeler for a two-run lead.
With Navy leading 5-3 in the top of the eighth, Gainey's day came to an end with two Black Knights on base and one out.
Joel Rinehart replaced Gainey and got the first batter he faced, Matt Carter, to ground out, as both base runners advanced. With the runners now in scoring position, Rinehart got Cody Murtle looking at strike three to end the threat and get Navy one inning closer to the title.
In the ninth, Rinehart struck out pinch hitter Sean McIlroy and got Price to pop out to second base for two quick outs.
Ben Koenigsfeld kept Army alive in the next at-bat with a single to left field on an 0-2 count. Rinehart hit the next batter, Moore, with a pitch and suddenly the tying runners were on base for Army.
Facing Henshaw, who homered twice in Army's game two win, a composed Rinehart quickly got Henshaw down in the count, 0-2. The righty then fired a fastball past a swinging Henshaw for the final out of the game and his sixth - and most memorable - save of the season.
"Joel really went right after their hitters," said Kostacopoulos. "That's what you want out of a closer. He didn't give them a lot of opportunities and he did a great job."
Army grabbed the lead in the second inning with two consecutive RBI hits with two outs. An RBI double to left field by Moore made it 3-0 in the top of the third.
Navy got its first run of the game in the bottom of the third off a double play. With the bases loaded, Azor grounded into the third double play of the game, but scored Kash Manzelli to get Navy on the board.
Gainey, who pitched three innings, gave up three hits and struck out three, earned the win and is now 2-0 on the year.
Carroll, who replaced starter Nick Dignacco in the fifth inning, took the loss for Army, which ends its season at 22-26.
Ben Nelson was named the Patriot League Tournament MVP and joined fellow pitcher Gainey, along with Driscoll and Azor, on the All-Tournament team.
"Our pitching, from a talent and scheme perspective was about as good as it gets over six games," said Kostacopoulos.
In two appearances, Nelson set the conference tournament record with 18 strikeouts, and his 18.1 innings pitched tied the league record.
The Midshipmen became the first top seed since 2007 to win the Patriot League title. Since the tournament shifted to its current four-team, two-weekend format in 2008, the Mids were the first top seed to advance out of the semifinals.
"Playing in the NCAA Tournament is really the pinnacle, and we're just so happy to get the chance to go," said Driscoll.
Notes...
• Navy's conference-leading six Patriot League titles came in 1994, '95, '98, '99, '02 and '11.
• Army and Navy have now met three times in the Patriot League Tournament finals...Army defeated Navy in 2000, while the Midshipmen won in 1994 and 2011.
• Navy leads the all-time series with Army, 106-97.
• Navy is now 20-18 all-time in the Patriot League Tournament.
• With a total of 12 strikeouts on Tuesday, the Navy pitching staff established a program record for strikeouts in a season with 414...The previous record of 407 was set by the 2007 squad.
• The Mids improved to 29-5 when holding teams to five or fewer hits.
• Tuesday marked the first time in his last five appearances that Navy starter Wes Olson did not earn a win...Olson went four and one-third innings on Tuesday and tied his career high with six strikeouts.
