Bridgewater State Reaches Regional Championship Round

By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise (Brockton)

HARWICH, Mass. -- There was good news and potentially bad news for the Bridgewater State University baseball team on Saturday afternoon.

The good news was the eighth-seeded Bears clinched a spot in the championship round of the NCAA Div. 3 New England Regional with a 6-3 victory over nationally ranked Wheaton College at Whitehouse Field.

On the negative side, junior Corey Batista, who has been BSU’s most valuable player through four games in the double-elimination tournament, suffered a left knee injury in the ninth inning and was taken to Cape Cod Hospital for tests on Saturday night.

Losing Batista, who pitched a complete game against top-seeded Tufts University to open the regional last Wednesday and is 6-for-13 with two home runs and six RBI at the plate, would be a difficult obstacle for the Bears to overcome.

BSU (26-16) needs a pair of victories today over second-seeded and nationally ranked Western New England College (41-9) today to win its first regional title since 1997. The championship round starts at noon with a second game, if necessary, to follow.

Batista, an All-New England first team selection who is 7-2, is scheduled to return to the mound on three days rest in the opening game against the Golden Bears, but if he is unable to go, Coach Rick Smith will have to alter his plans. Batista had to be helped off the field with two outs in the last inning.

“If this tournament ended today with us winning, he’s the tournament MVP,” said Smith. “If he can’t play, we just lost the tournament MVP. If Corey’s down, that’s big to have to fill.”

Batista was hurt in the top of the ninth inning while attempting to turn a double play from his shortstop position. With the bases loaded and no outs, Wheaton’s Eric Laliberte was called out for runner interference for being out of the base line when he slid into Batista’s knee.

Reliever Jim Balboni finished off the win by getting a strikeout to send the Bears to the final round.

BSU, 3-1 in the tourney, rode a strong pitching performance by senior Jeff Puopolo (10 strikeouts in eight-plus innings), another homer by Batista and an 11-hit attack to eliminate third-seeded Wheaton (32-12).

Puopolo, who was below .500 during the regular season, improved to 4-4 with a clutch performance as he allowed just single runs in the second, third and fifth innings, all with two outs.

“I was thinking possibly it could be my last game, and I just didn’t want it to be that,’’ said Puopolo, who shook off a line shot off his leg in the second inning. “I just wanted to go out and pitch my heart out. I was up and down all year, but you take the good with the bad and hope for the best.

“I wasn’t anxious on the mound today. I settled down. I didn’t let anything get to me. If they get a base hit, OK, I’ll get the next guy.”

With the Bears holding a three-run lead in the top of the eighth, the Lyons loaded the bases with one out, but Puopolo struck out the next two hitters to get out of the jam. He was lifted after allowing two hits to start the ninth.

“Jeff did an absolute great job,” said Smith. “He’s a big-game pitcher. All through his (American) Legion career (with Post 35), he was in big games. He’s been in the state championship, he’s pitched in tournament games for us. He’s a big-game pitcher, and he showed it today.”

The Bears took a 1-0 lead in the first when Joshua Ferreira (3-for-5) scored on a sacrifice fly by Ian Williams, but Wheaton moved in front, 2-1, on a wild pitch in the second and a RBI single by Dan Haugh in the third.

BSU took the lead for good in the fourth when Ferreira hit a two-run double to deep right and David Pierce of East Bridgewater (2-for-3) added a sacrifice fly. Wheaton closed to 4-3 in the fifth on a Haugh RBI double.

Batista provided the insurance in the seventh inning, hitting his fifth homer of the season to left after a double by Tyler Dennis of Stoughton (2-for-4).

BSU has made the regional championship round for the sixth time in Smith’s nine trips to the NCAAs, doing so in 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2004.

“It’s going to be a tough road to beat WNEC twice,” said Smith, “but this experience of coming back to beat a good team like Wheaton, it’s just great experience for a young team.

“We talk in the beginning of every year rankings and this and that. We came in here ranked eighth and we’ve played to No. 2 at this point in time. Now we’ve got to go out (today) and show them again we can play.

“They’ve worked hard. We start this in January and to get to this point and this level, it’s a big achievement.”