O'Neill, Miller pitch baseball past Trinity

Sean O'Neill '18 and Sam Miller '16 (photos by Sportspix/Jan Volk)
Sean O'Neill '18 and Sam Miller '16 (photos by Sportspix/Jan Volk)

WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University baseball team got a couple of complete-game pitching performances from rookie Sean O'Neill (Reading, Mass./Reading Memorial) and junior Sam Miller (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) today as the Judges swept a doubleheader from visiting Trinity College, 3-1 and 4-2.

      O'Neill and Miller each tossed a complete game and scattered 12 hits across their 14 innings of work. In the opener, a 3-1 win, O'Neill held the Bantams off the board until the seventh inning. He gave up seven hits and just one earned run, striking out five and walking one to improve to 5-2 on the season, temporarily tying Miller for the team lead in wins and complete games with four.

      Not to be outdone, Miller tossed his University Athletic Association-leading fifth CG, allowing just five hits in seven innings. He fanned five and walked two, surrendering his runs on a pair of solo home runs. In improving to 6-3 on the season, Miller is tied for second in the UAA in victories.

      In the opener, Brandeis scored first in the fourth inning. Senior 1B Kyle Brenner (Brookfield, Mass./St Peter Marian) roped a double to center field to lead it off, and classmate LF Tom McCarthy (Yonkers, N.Y./Fieldston School) drew a walk. Junior catcher Connor Doyle (Avon, Conn./Avon Old Farms) laid down a perfect bunt, beating the throw to first to load the bases. Trinity rookie Nicholas Fusco (Orange, Conn./Amity) got a shallow liner to right for the first out. He then coaxed another shallow fly to center by Judge senior 3B Rob Trenk (West Orange, N.J./West Orange) but Brenner tagged up and tested the center fielder's arm and beat the throw, giving the Judges a 1-0 lead.

      Brandeis took advantage of two Bantam errors in the sixth for a couple of key insurance runs. Brenner reached on one miscue, then stole second. Sophomore Ryan Tettemer (Westfield, Mass./Suffield Acad.) singled to put runners on the corners, but Doyle's hot shot to third saw Brenner cut down at the plate. He stayed in the pickle long enough for the runners to move into scoring position. Trinity issued an intentional walk to load the bases, and the strategy almost worked out, but Trenk's grounder to first was thrown away as the visitors tried to convert the double play, allowing Doyle and Tettemer to score.

      In the seventh, Trinity got a single from LF Brendan Pierce (Hingham, Mass./Dexter) and an RBI double from SS Adam Moossman (East Northport, N.Y/Northport) to spoil O'Neill's shutout bid. The Bantams got another single to put the tying run on base, but O'Neill induced a 6-4-3 double play to end the game.

      In game two, Trinity senior CF Evan Abraham (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Brentwood) got the visitors off to a quick start with a lead-off home run against Miller. The Bantams would get two more hits in the frame, but a shallow pop to right produced a force out at second, allowing Miller to escape further damage.

      Brandeis took the lead in the third, when McCarthy walked and sophomore catcher Remy Pontes (Arlington, Mass./Arlington) singled to start the frame. A bunt to the pitcher put them in scoring position, and Trenk brought home the tying run with a single up the middle. Senior 2B Brian Allen (Salem, N.H./Central Catholic School) executed a squeeze play to bring home Pontes and give Brandeis the lead for good.

      The Judges scored twice more in the fourth, when Trenk doubled home sophomore Max Hart (Montville, Conn./Montville) for his third RBI of the day. Allen reached on an error, and a passed ball allowed the team's fourth run to come home.

      Miller was in control, retiring 13 of the last 15 batters he faced, with the only hit a long home run by Trinity's Pierce in the top of the fifth. Miller gave up just one walk after that to pick up the win.

      Trinity's losses were suffered by Fusco (6 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 K, 3 BB) in the opener and junior Dylan Callahan (Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich) in the second game (5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 K, 2 BB).

      Brandeis wraps up its regular season on Wednesday afternoon at home against UMass Dartmouth at 3:30 p.m. Trinity hosts Eastern Connecticut State at the same time.

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