NEW HAVEN, Connecticut - The American International College baseball team suffered a 9-8 walk-off loss to Southern Connecticut State University on Wednesday, April 8 in a Northeast 10 Conference matchup.
AIC is now 10-20 overall and 6-12 in the NE10.
The Yellow Jackets were all over the Owls in the first three innings, with
Aidan Streeter,
Cole Patterson, and
Yeudy Ramirez driving in runs in the second, while
Josh Frometa hit an RBI double followed by a two-run
Nate Suncar single in the third for a 6-0 lead.
In the fourth, Brennan Staubley went deep for a two-run shot to cut the AIC lead back to 6-2.Â
That held until the eighth, when
Leandro Guevara hit a solo shot, and
Sam Tanous added an RBI single later in the frame.
In the ninth, it all came apart; the Owls led off with two straight hits, and an error loaded the bases. A fielders choice and a flyout brought in two, but left the home team with only one out. However, back-to-back walks and a base hit cut the gap to 8-6, and Spencer Chard came to the plate as the winning run. He drilled a walk-off three-run home run, ending the game in shocking fashion.
The ninth inning spoiled what had been an incredible outing by starter
Leo Vitale. The rookie went eight frames with two runs on eight hits, walking one but fanning five.Â
AIC will look to right the ship at home with a four-game series against defending NE10 Champion Pace University. The first two will be played Saturday, April 11 starting at noon.
