Regional powers meet Tuesday as Bryant welcomes No. 25 UConn to Conaty Park
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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No. 25 Connecticut | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 3 |
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Bryant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | X | 9 | 11 | 1 |
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University baseball team begins a five-game homestand on Tuesday when it welcomes No. 25 UConn to Conaty Park for a 3:00 p.m. first pitch.
LINKS
PROBABLE STARTERS
Vito Morgese (2-4, 5.54) vs. Ronnie Rossomando (2-1, 4.08)
Morgese will look to continue his string of strong starts on Tuesday against UConn. The rookie left hander has won each of his last two starts, limiting Brown and URI to a combined four runs over 12 2/3 innings. Morgese has struck out 10 and walked just three in the two starts.
Rossomando will be making his fourth start of the year for the Huskies. He has struck out 18 and walked 15 in 17 2/3 innings. Rossomando shined in the Cape Cod League last summer, going 4-2 with a 2.41 ERA in 22 1/3 innings.
SERIES HISTORY
Bryant and UConn will be meeting for the 10th time on Tuesday, with the Huskies holding a 6-3 lead in the all-time series. UConn won the first three meetings between the two teams and has won back-to-back games thanks to a 6-3 win last year in Storrs and an 18-5 win in 2015 at Conaty Park. Last year, the Bulldogs scored three runs in the top of the first but that was all they would score as UConn tied the game in the fourth and took the lead with a three-run fifth.
HISTORY LESSON
Bryant's first-ever victory over UConn came on April 24, 2012 at J.O. Christian Field in Storrs, Conn. The Bulldogs won the game 7-1 behind a superb outing from senior Brian O'Neil. The righty allowed just one unearned run over 5 2/3 innings and the Black and Gold three runs in each of the first two innings. Dan Muscatello had three hits and two runs scored and John Mullen drove in three runs in the victory.
BEST IN THE NORTHEAST
Bryant and UConn are the two winningest teams in the Northeast over the last six-plus seasons. Since the start of 2011, the Bulldogs have won 236 games, six more than the Huskies (230).
NOTES AND NOTABLES FOR UCONN
The Bulldogs enter Tuesday's contest fresh off a Northeast Conference series victory over Wagner. Bryant lost on Friday but rebounded to win three-straight one-run games and has now won seven of its last eight.
Bryant's three-straight victories by one run is a first in DI program history. Last week, the Bulldogs went 4-1 and won every game by one run. They had started the year 0-5 in such games.
Senior Cole Fabio (Mahwah, N.J.) is on the verge of three milestones. The veteran second baseman needs just four walks to tie the all-time program record for walks in a career, needs just one stolen base to tie the DI program record for career stolen bases and just three more hits to become the 18th player in program history to record 200 career hits.
Freshman Gaby Cruz (Miami, Fla.) broke out of a slump last week, going 6-for-16 with four RBI in the five games. He drove in a pair of runs in game two of Saturday's doubleheader, including the eventual game winner. Cruz was at it again on Sunday, capping Bryant's two-out, two-run rally with a go-ahead single in the ninth.
Junior Logan Lessard (Cromwell, Conn.) was busy last week as he racked up three saves. He earned a save with a scoreless ninth on Wednesday, recorded the final out of game two Saturday and retired all three batters he faced on Sunday. Lessard has five saves on the season and is a perfect 11-for-11 in his career.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
UConn comes into Tuesday's game with an 18-10 overall record and a 6-0 record in The American. The Huskies moved into the top 25 on Monday as Baseball America ranked them No. 25. It is the first time they have been in the top 25 since 2011 and their first 6-0 start to league play since the 1976 season. UConn picked up a big three-game sweep at East Carolina, a team that defeated the Bulldogs in the first game of the 2016 Charlottesville Regional.
The Huskies are led on offense by Zac Susi, Anthony Prato and Willy Yahn. All three are hitting over .300 with Susi leading the way at .348. He has eight doubles, two home runs and 31 RBI, while Prato has scored 30 times and stolen 10 bases. Prato and Isaac Feldstein (10 doubles) have also driven in 19 runs apiece.