STORRS, Conn. – Over the past few weeks, the Fairfield University Baseball team has shown flashes of their true potential in the 2019 season, and on Tuesday afternoon we learned how special this year can actually be. The Stags dominated nationally-ranked UConn by out-hitting the 22nd best team in the country 19-7, leading to a comfortable 10-3 victory at J.O. Christian Field. The victory marked Fairfield's first over the Huskies since 2006 and was UConn's first home loss of the season.
"We took some good swings we looked for good pitches and barreled some balls," Head Coach
Bill Currier said. "It's a midweek game and we played with them today and we were fortunate to have good pitching."
The 10 runs scored against UConn was more than the Stags have scored in their previous four meetings in the series when they scored seven combined.
The Fairfield bats got started early as the Stags started the game with four-straight hits.
Tim Zeng started the game with a single to left and was quickly driven in on a double by
Justin Guerrera.
Jack Gethings would follow with a RBI triple and
Anthony Boselli capped the scoring with a single to right center.
UConn would answer back with two runs in the first inning, but that would be those would be the last runs for the Huskies until the fifth inning. The pitching duo of
Josh Arnold and
Eli Oliphant would surrender just five hits over the next eight innings against a dangerous UConn lineup.
Arnold battled through the first five innings, earning the victory after surrendering three runs on five hits and striking out two. Oliphant was the real story on the hill, tossing the final four innings in relief to earn his first collegiate save as he gave up just two hits and struck out four among the 14 batters he faced.
"Eli was dealing today," Coach Currier said. "His slider and two seamer was moving and his arm was fresh. He had a low pitch count and because he didn't throw all week we let him throw the final inning."
The pitching brilliance of the duo allowed the Stags' bats to take over the game as Fairfield scored three in the second and a single run in the third. After a RBI fielder's choice by Guerrera,
Dan Ryan came to the plate with the bases loaded and shot a base hit into left field, plating two runs.
Giacomo Brancato would have the big blast with a leadoff solo homerun in the third.
Mike Caruso would add a RBI single in the seventh before Boselli put the exclamation mark on the upset with a two run homer in the eighth.
Oliphant would pitch a perfect ninth, striking out two in the frame.
The 19 hits were a season-high for the Stags, who had contributions up and down their lineup. Every Stag starter has at least one hit, with eight players recording multiple base knocks. Gethings led the team with his second four-hit game within a week as he also matched the four hits against St. John's.
The Stags, who have won seven of their last eight games, will look to keep the momentum going as they host another in-state opponent in Yale on Wednesday at 3pm.
