Syracuse, N.Y. – The top-seeded Le Moyne College Dolphins earned an 8-0 win over the no. 2 seed in the Southeast Division, Franklin Pierce University on Thursday afternoon in the first game of the NE10 final four double-elimination Championship Weekend at Dick Rockwell Field.

Senior right-hander Sam DiGeorge (Canastota, N.Y./Canastota), who earned a spot on the 2023 NE10 All-Conference Second Team following an outstanding regular season for the 'Phins, delivered a superb start against the Ravens on Thursday, holding the FPU lineup to just four hits, two walks and zero runs with four strikeouts in 7.0 innings of work. After freshman reliever Eric Swiencicki (Lancaster, N.Y./St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute) tossed two perfect innings in the eighth and ninth to secure the victory, the Dolphins completed the nine-inning postseason contest without allowing their opponent to reach third base.

"All year (our defense) has been making plays for me, so it's easy. I just throw my sinkers inside (and let the defense do the rest)," said DiGeorge following his 12^th appearance, and sixth start of 2023.

The Ravens were unable to put a runner in scoring position against DiGeorge until the top of the sixth inning. With the victory, DiGeorge improved his 2023 record to 6-1, and lowered his earned run average to 1.60 (No. 1 ERA among NE10 hurlers).

Senior center fielder Zach Brush (New York Mills, N.Y./New York Mills) provided two hits and a season-high four runs batted in during the victory that put Le Moyne in the Championship Weekend winners' bracket. After fifth-year shortstop Nick Nevins (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Roy C. Ketcham) and freshman DH Brody Keneston (Ballston Spa, N.Y./Ballston Spa) reached base with hits in the bottom of the first inning, Brush lifted a fly ball over the fence in left-center field for his third home run of the season, giving Le Moyne an early 3-0 lead.

"I was just sitting fastball. I knew they were going to come at me with strikes, so I just wanted to get the barrel on the ball and see what happens," said Brush after the game. "We can hit one through nine. We have confidence in everyone in the lineup and everybody hits the ball hard, and we love playing at home," Brush continued when asked about Le Moyne's impressive offensive production as of late.

Brush's home run on Thursday was the team's 50th of the season, marking the first time a Le Moyne baseball team has recorded at least 50 home runs in a single season since 2008.

After Le Moyne committed just one error (on a hard-hit ball) during their NE10 First Round victory against #4 SW Adelphi, the Dolphins committed zero errors on Thursday and made a handful of impressive plays in the field.

In the top of the third inning, FPU catcher Max Gebauer led off and sent a fly ball to deep right field. Le Moyne's right fielder Wyatt Patchett ran straight back to the fence, watching the ball over his left shoulder as he moved. As he reached the warning track, Patchett snagged the fly ball out of the air, then slammed into the fence. The sophomore from Geneva held onto the ball and lifted his glove up in the air after the play to alert the umpires that he made the catch for out number one.

With one out and nobody on base in the top of the fifth, FPU left fielder Jake Miller ripped a line drive over the third baseman's head and down the left field line. Miller rounded first base hard thinking he had a chance at a double, but Le Moyne's left fielder Adam Sullivan got to the line quickly, snared the ball to keep it from rolling to the wall, then turned and fired a laser towards second base to dissuade Miller from trying to turn his single into a double. Immediately following Sullivan's hustle play in the outfield to keep the runner at first, DiGeorge got a ground ball to Nevins at shortstop, who initiated a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

FPU shortstop and leadoff hitter Ian Battipaglia delivered a one-out double down the right field line with nobody on base in the top of the sixth to give the Ravens their first runner in scoring position. DiGeorge came up with a big strikeout during the next at bat, then he got a ground ball to Nevins who fired to first in time for the final out of the inning, stranding Battipaglia at second.

Franklin Pierce first baseman Jose Savinon led off the top of the seventh inning and hit a hard line drive to the left of Le Moyne freshman third baseman Lukas Egenhauser (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern). Egenhauser reacted quickly, leaping into the air and snaring the missile in his glove for the first out of the inning.

FPU's Brian Hadden drew a walk during the next at bat, but then Le Moyne graduate second baseman Drew Carroll (Clifton Park, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy (Albany)) fielded a ground ball up the middle, stepped on second base for the second out, then fired to first in time for the inning-ending double play.

Swiencicki replaced DiGeorge to begin the top of the eighth inning and recorded a quick 1-2-3 frame to put the Dolphins back on offense.

Keneston hit a hard grounder to third in the bottom of the eighth and following a throwing error on the play he advanced to second base. After a failed pickoff attempt, Keneston was able to advance to third with just one out in the inning. Brush then hammered the ball to the fence in the left-center field gap to record his fourth RBI of the afternoon and extend Le Moyne's lead to 5-0.

After Patchett drew a walk, Sullivan drove in Brush and moved Patchett to third with a base hit through the right side of the infield. Le Moyne sophomore catcher Benji Ries (Buffalo Grove, N.Y./Adlai E. Stevenson) put the ball in play towards the left side to drive in Patchett, and he reached safely following a throwing error. Sullivan advanced to third on a wild pitch, then scored on another wild pitch, making it 8-0 in favor of the Dolphins.

Swiencicki delivered another 1-2-3 inning in the top of the ninth to close out the contest.

After #3 SW Pace claimed a 7-0 win over #4 NE Bentley in game two of Championship Weekend on Thursday, the Dolphins will take on the Setters on Friday at 1:00 p.m.

The two sides will take the field following an elimination matchup between Franklin Pierce and Bentley, which is set to start at 10:00 a.m. Whoever wins the matchup between Pace and Le Moyne will earn a spot in the NE10 title game, while the other will play again on Friday in an elimination contest against the winner of Franklin Pierce and Bentley.

Le Moyne previously claimed a four-game series sweep of Pace in NE10 Southwest Division regular season action on April 21 and 22.