Box Score WINCHESTER, Va. - Five home runs and 13 unanswered runs carried the Catholic University baseball team to a 13-10 victory over host Shenandoah in the Winchester Regional of the Division III Baseball Championship.
With the win, the Cardinals (32-13) set a new school record for wins in a season with 32 and, more importantly, advanced to the program's first-ever Super Regionals.
Freshman Dante Pozzi, who was named Most Outstanding Player of the regional tournament, went 4-for-5 with a double, home run and three RBIs. In four games this weekend, he hit .444, going 8-for-18 with five runs and five RBIs.
After the Hornets (37-12-1) took a 6-0 lead in the top of the first, the Cardinals scored 13 unanswered runs, including five in the fourth and five in the sixth.
Junior Zach Burton got things started with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first before Pozzi's three-run homer to left in the fourth put the Cardinals in front to stay, 7-6. Five players hit a home run for Catholic as the team scored 10 of its 13 runs via the long ball.
With one out in the bottom of the sixth and the Cardinals leading 8-6, Pozzi and Burton hit back-to-back doubles before junior Ben Nardi hit a three-run blast to straight-away center for what proved to be the game-winning runs as Catholic took an 11-6 advantage.
Nardi's seventh home run of the season was the first of three-straight homers for the Cardinals as seniors Peter Giombetti and Matt Tesoriero followed with solo shots. Giombetti added to his single-season school record with his 14th home run of the season while he moved within two of the career record with his 17th.
While Catholic was racking up eight extra-base hits with three doubles and five home runs, freshman Cody Bosak held the Shenandoah offense at bay, allowing just seven hits and three runs over 6.1 innings to earn his third win of the season.
The Hornets added a run in the seventh and two in the eighth when head coach Ross Natoli called on Landmark Conference Pitcher of the Year, junior Tucker Alch. After throwing 120 pitches in a complete game victory over Stevens on Friday, Alch threw 26 more to eight batters on Sunday, surrendering four hits and one run while striking out two to secure one of the biggest victories in program history.
Tesoriero was 3-for-5 with one RBI and two runs scored while freshman Lucas Malave also had three hits, going 3-for-4 with one run and one RBI.
Pozzi, Tesoriero, Malave, Nardi, Alch and Bosak were each named to the All-Tournament Team.
Catholic will face the winner between Keystone and Ithaca in the best-of-three Super Regionals. The Giants and Bombers will meet in the championship game of the Immaculata Regional on Monday. Ithaca needs just one win to advance while Keystone must win twice.