The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

Baseball: NU upsets No. 1 Old Dominion

Northeastern went to Norfolk, Va. to play a three-game series against Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) rival Old Dominion last weekend, looking to get back on track in conference play after being swept by UNC-Wilmington a week ago.

The Huskies ended a four-game conference losing streak with a 7-5 victory over Old Dominion on Sunday. Senior Chris Emanuele sparked the offense, going 3-4 with three runs scored while freshman Mike Tamsin drove in three with a pair of singles.

The win moved the Huskies (15-14, 9-6 CAA) into a third-place tie with UNC-Wilmington and Virginia Commonwealth.

Sophomore Kris Dabrowiecki (4-1) had a solid performance in the win, pitching seven innings, allowing five runs on eight hits, walking four and striking out six batters. Senior Matt Morizio pitched the final two innings for his fifth save of the season.

“It was an important win for us,” coach Neil McPhee said. “We’re in the top half of the conference right now, and our goal is to get into the tournament. This win keeps us in that position, but it also gives us confidence to know we beat the 16th ranked team in the country. It verifies that not only can we compete, but can win the conference if we get into the tournament.”

The Huskies had dropped a pair of heartbreakers earlier in the series against the Monarchs. NU lost 3-2 in 10 innings on Friday despite a strong performance from junior and pitcher Adam Ottavino, who struck out 13 and held the Monarchs to one run over nine innings. The Huskies took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the tenth, only to see junior outfielder Mike Zahm hit a bases loaded game-winning single off Morizio.

“We’re frustrated because on Friday we had the game going into the last inning, we had the lead and didn’t hang on,” McPhee said. “It was our misplays that caused us to lose the game that everyone thought we should have won.”

The Monarchs shut out the Huskies in the second game in a 3-0 win on Saturday. Junior Jason Godin struck out a school-record 18 in a complete-game shutout.

Despite the two losses, McPhee said he is very happy with the play of his starting pitchers.

“When you look at the overall pitching of the weekend, everybody was superb,” McPhee said. “It’s just one-two-three each weekend, and it’s clearly the main reason we’re competing as well in the conference.”

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