WALTHAM, Mass. – In a game that featured nearly three hours' worth of rain delays, the Brandeis University baseball team defeated University Athletic Association rivals NYU, 6-5, thanks to a walk-off hit by grad student CF Dan Frey (Ipswich, Mass./St. John's Prep). With the win, the Judges improve to 11-6 overall, 2-4 in UAA play. The Violets fall to 15-5, 5-5 UAA.
NYU owned a 4-1 lead after two innings, thanks to an RBI single by 1B Nick Argienzian and an RBI hit batter and an error in the first inning, followed by a home run LF Connor Roggero in the second. Brandeis scored its early run on an RBI single by junior 3B Brian King (Palos Verde, Calif./Palos Verde).
After a third-inning rain delay, the Brandeis pitching settled down, holding the Violets scoreless until the eighth inning. The Judges climbed back into the game with a series of single runs. In the third, Frey singled home his first RBI of the day. In the sixth, first-year DH Aidan Schleer (Sparta, N.J./Avon Old Farms, Conn.) plated junior RF Steven Simon (Hanover, Mass. / Hanover) with a sacrifice fly to make it 4-3.
In the bottom of the seventh, junior LF Sam Nugent (Mansfield, Mass. / Mansfield) led off with a double to center field. Graduate student 1B Mike Khoury (E. Bridgewater, Mass./E. Bridgewater) moved Nugent to third base with a fly ball to deep center. That was followed by another rain delay that lasted more than two hours. On the restart, the first pitch delivered by NYU reliever Ashwin Chona bounced and went past the backstop, allowing Nugent to score the tying run.
NYU went back ahead in the top of the eighth when Dakota Barbet was hit by a Christian Petrisko (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. / Westminster Academy) pitch, stole second, went third when the throw down sailed into centerfield and scored on a Roggero single. Petrisko got out of the inning with no further trouble on a pair of groundouts.
Brandeis tied things up in the bottom of the frame when King delivered a towering home run to left field, his third of the season and the fourth of his career, off of NYU closer John Gassler. Petrisko retired the Violets in order in the ninth, setting up Frey's heroics. Nugent led off with a walk, followed by a Khoury single. A wild pitch led to a walk to grad student catcher Luke Hall (Georgetown, Mass./Georgetown) loaded the bases, and Frey delivered a 2-2 pitch to right field for Brandeis's fourth walk-off victory of the season.
Frey finished the day going 2-5 with 2 RBI. Khoury was 3-5 with two runs scored, while King also had two hits, going 2-4 with two RBI, a run scored and a home run. Roggero was NYU's only multiple hitter, going 2-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. His home run was the Violets' only extra-base hit.
Petrisko earned his second career win with two innings of one-hit relief, allowing one earned run. Junior Marc Maestri (Katonah, N.Y. / Somers) went 4.1 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on four hits in the start. He struck out seven and walked five. Junior Reid Latham (North Easton, Mass. / Oliver Ames) went 2.2 innings of effective relief, allowing just one hit and striking out three without a walk. For NYU, Gassler fell to 2-1, allowing three hits and two earned runs in an inning-plus of relief.
The two teams will meet for a doubleheader tomorrow starting at 11 a.m.