New Haven, Conn. – The Le Moyne College baseball team swept Southern Connecticut State University in a doubleheader on Sunday at The Ballpark at SCSU to close out the regular season and claim the third seed in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship. The Dolphins rallied for a 3-2 win in 11 innings in the opener and broke open a tie game with seven runs in the top of the ninth for a 10-5 lead.

The Dolphins (27-16, 15-8 NE-10, 10-8 SW) open play in the Northeast-10 Championship on Tuesday against second-seeded Pace University at a time to be determined.

The Dolphins opened the scoring in the first game with one run on two hits in the first inning. Sophomore right fielder Brian Cox (North Kingstown, R.I./North Kingstown) drew walk on four pitches to start the game, moved to second on a single to right center by senior second baseman Brett Charbonneau (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker) and then took third as junior catcher/third baseman Gabe Levanti (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker/Northeastern) reached on a fielder's choice. Freshman first baseman/designated hitter Nick Place (Towanda, Pa./Towanda) followed with a single down the right field line to drive in Cox.

Southern Connecticut State took the lead in the bottom of the third with two runs on two hits. Designated hitter Alex Wichman led off with single down the left field line, took second on a walk by right fielder Joe Uccello and moved to third on a single by second baseman Jake DeRosa. Left fielder Nick Lambert followed with a sacrifice fly to center to knock in Wichman. Uccello then scored on a sacrifice bunt by shortstop            Ethan Joyce.

The Dolphins forced extras by scoring one run on two hits and an error by the Owls in the ninth. Senior designated hitter/catcher Trey West (Fairport, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit) reached on an error by the pitcher with one out, but he was retired at second as senior shortstop/pitcher Dylan Swetman (Honeoye Falls, N.Y./Honeoye Falls-Lima) reached on a fielder's choice. After freshman pinch-hitter David DiNorcia (Naples, Fla./Seacrest Country Day) singled to keep the Dolphins alive, redshirt junior center fielder Mark Martin (Sauquoit, N.Y./Sauquoit Valley/Bryant) singled to left center to drive in Swetman from second.

Le Moyne took the lead in the top of the 11th on one hit. Freshman shortstop Josiah Gray (New Rochelle, N.Y./ New Rochelle) opened the inning with a walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Swetman and then came around to score on a single by Martin.

Swetman earned his second win of the season out of the bullpen after tossing three scoreless innings, while striking out two. Martin finished the game with three hits, while Charbonneau had two. Jake Santamaria took the loss after giving up one run over two innings.

Le Moyne started the scoring in the nightcap with a run on two hits in the second inning. Senior third baseman/first baseman Pat Wright (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool) led off with a single and then stole second and third. Sophomore left fielder JT Pittman (Ashland, Mass./Ashland/Bridgton Academy) followed with a single to right to plate Wright.

The Owls evened the score at one apiece in the third on two hits. DeRosa led off with a double to left center, moved to third on a fly out and then scored on a two-out double down the left field line by Kyle Hart.

The Dolphins regained the lead with one run on two hits in the fourth inning. Place led off with a single up the middle, but was retired at second as West reached on a fielder's choice. After West stole second, he scored on a single up the middle by Swetman.

Le Moyne pushed its lead to 3-1 in the fifth on two hits. Cox singled to center with one out and came around to score on a double to left field by Charbonneau.

Southern Connecticut State evened the score at three apiece in the seventh on just one hit. Uccello walked and DeRosa was hit by a pitch to start the frame. After a sacrifice bunt and a pop out, Hart singled down the left field line to knock in Uccello and DeRosa.

The Dolphins exploded for seven runs on six hits in the ninth inning to take the lead for good. Pittman was hit by a pitch with one out, moved to third on a single to right by Martin and then scored as Cox reached on a fielder's choice. Following a single to right by Charbonneau to load the bases, Levanti singled to knock in Martin and force a pitching change. Place then singled to drive in Cox and Charbonneau. After Wright walked and another pitching change, West doubled to left field to plate sophomore pinch-runner Timothy Corapi (Liverpool, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) and Wright. Swetman then doubled to knock in West.

Southern Connecticut State scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth, but could not cut into its deficit further. Pinch-hitter Jake Paul was walked to start the inning and moved to third on a double by DeRosa. After a pop out, Joyce lifted a sacrifice fly to center to knock in Paul. Hart followed with a single to right center to drive in DeRosa.
 
Redshirt freshman righty Ben Walsh (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill) earned his first career win after striking out one over two and two-thirds innings out of the bullpen, while yielding two runs on one hit. Levanti registered three of Le Moyne's 16 hits, while Cox, Charbonneau, Place, West and Swetman each had two hits. Quantique White took the loss for the Owls after giving up four runs in one-third on an inning.