NCAA DIII CWS: Salve Regina's greatest season comes to a close

EASTLAKE, Ohio (Monday, June 3, 2024) - Salve Regina University baseball stood tied 2-2 with University of Wisconsin Whitewater into the eighth inning before the Warhawks scored three late runs to clinch the ticket to the championship series, 5-2, and end the Seahawks' season in the national semifinals.

Wisconsin Whitewater (44-10) advances to the best-of-three championship round against Misericordia University which ended the run of defending champion University of Lynchburg with a pair of wins over the Hornets today.

Salve Regina (40-10), which reached a most-ever wins mark on Saturday night against the Warhawks behind a 2-0 masterpiece from All-American sophomore pitcher Sean Mulligan (Verona, N.J.), turned to another sophomore on short rest. Kyle Carozza (Fairfield, Conn.), who earned a tough save on Friday, faced three batters in the Monday afternoon loss to UW-Whitewater, was given the ball in the nightcap.

Carozza had gone as long as four innings, a game against Washington & Jefferson where he closed out the game and the regionals with a long save. In his first career start, he gutted out five innings on Monday night, allowing just one earned run.

"Kyle was awesome," said Salve Regina coach Eric Cirella. "He gave us a shot to win. I thought it was spectacular. I was looking for three (innings). He was fine. That's just what Kyle does."

"I took each pitch as if it was its own thing," Carozza said after the game. "And each time I got a strike, I'm like, all right – (on to) the next one. And then I would get the inning. I'm like, all right, let's go to the next inning."

"After the fourth inning, I started to feel it a little bit and coach told me to empty the tank. And I felt I did that pretty well."

Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill.) doubled to lead off the second for Whitewater and came around to score on a single to third base by Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill.). Tyler Cannoe (Schenectady, N.Y.) tied it up (1-1) for the Seahawks with a solo shot, a blast over the left field bleachers, his sixth of the season and fifth in the last seven games.

"I think that might have been the hardest and farthest ball I've ever hit in my life," Cannoe said. "It couldn't have come at a better time.  I'm just thankful I got the chance to do it."

The teams traded runs again in the fourth as Paden had another RBI single after Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla.) reached second base on a two-out error by the Seahawks. Hunter Yaworski's (Brooklyn, Conn.) sacrifice fly brought in Evan O'Rourke (Arlington, Mass.), who had singled to lead off the inning.

Meanwhile, the Salve Regina staff was keeping the game close, and so was catcher Brady Smolinski (North Grafton, Mass.), who threw out three would-be basestealers, one of them on a called pickoff play that pitcher Jason Arrigo (Basking Ridge, N.J.) missed and delivered to the plate. Even though he wasn't expecting the pitch, and even though it was a breaking ball, Smolinski still threw Hopper out.

"I like to say I beg for teams to run," Smolinski said. "It's my favorite part. I love every part of the game behind the plate: calling the game, working with my pitchers, blocking and throwing guys out. But for me, the most rewarding is when I can get an out for the team. I feel like you running on me is kind of like a sense of disrespect."

After three scoreless frames on both sides, Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Mass.) broke the tie with an eighth-inning lead-off home run to right field, just over the reach of Seahawk All-American outfielder Matt D'Amato (Midland Park, N.J.). After a Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill.) fly out, successive singles by Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis.), Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis.), and Hopper produced a two-run lead. Frank beat out an infield single in the ninth to add an insurance run when Bennett Frazer (Oconto, Wis.) crossed the plate.

In the bottom of the ninth, sophomore reliever Logan Eisenbarth (Barrington, Ill.) struck out the first two Seahawks before Cannoe reached on a walk and Elite 90 winner Brandon Grover (Ashland, Mass.) got hit by a pitch to bring the tying run to the plate. Pinch-hitter Shane Williams (Georgetown, Mass.) lifted a fly ball to deep centerfield that Dominik McVay (Mineral Point, Wis.) caught for the final out.

So, the two finalists for the 2024 NCAA Division III Baseball National Championships are the last two schools to knock out Salve Regina - Misericordia (2023) and Wis.-Whitewater (2024) - while the Seahawks have a win over both in each of the last two postseasons. Coincidentally, Salve Regina played a part in knocking out its 2022 nemesis, Birmingham Southern College, with a 7-5 win on the opening day of this year's tournament as the Panthers eventually won by a walk-off home run and lost by a walk-off home run to head home to a school that closed its doors for the final time after 160 years.

POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Wis.-Whitewater 5, Salve Regina 2
Records: Salve Regina (40-10), Wis.-Whitewater (44-10)
All-Time Series: Salve Regina and Wisconsin Whitewater met for the first time ever in any sport two nights ago and the Warhawks win for the second time tonight in a "rubber match."

SUMMARY

• T2 - Danny Hopper led off with a ground-rule double down the left field line and moved to third on a ground out to first baseman Tyler Cannoe by Andy Thies. Sam Paden drove in the run with an infield single to shortstop Michael Breen. | Warhawks 1, Seahawks 0
• B2 - Tyler Cannoe homered to deep left field with one out. | Seahawks 1, Warhawks 1
• T4 - Andy Thies reached second on an error to the right side and Paden had his second RBI with a single through the left side. | Warhawks 2, Seahawks 1
• B4 - Evan O'Rourke led off with a single to left field and Christian Homa moved him to third with a single up the middle. Hunter Yaworski lifted a sacrifice fly to left field. | Seahawks 2, Warhawks 2
• T8 - Aaron Holland led off the frame with an opposite-field homer to right. After a Scolan fly out, successive singles by Frank, Cootway, and Hopper produced a two-run lead. | Warhawks 4, Seahawks 2
• T9 - Bennett Frazer singled through the right side with one out and moved to second after a walk to Aaron Holland. A groundout moved both runners up a base before Frank had an RBI single to shortstop. | Warhawks 5, Seahawks 2

NOTEWORTHY

• Tyler Cannoe has homered five times in his last seven games. Now tied for team lead with Hunter Yaworski (6), Cannoe hit his first of the season at Emerson College on April 27.
• Kyle Carozza started for the first time in 2024 and went five innings with no decision (score tied 2-2). He allowed just one earned run while striking out two.
• Jason Arrigo entered in the top of the sixth and allowed a two-out single to Danny Hopper who was caught stealing on a throw from catcher Brady Smolinski to Michael Breen.

NEXT UP
Salve Regina's season ends with its most wins ever (40-10) and furthest advancement in the NCAAs. Wisconsin Whitewater moves to the championship round on Wednesday against Misericordia University.