Joined by Dan Campanelli and Joseph Murphy , our co-@DigmiNation Players of the Game. Murphy fired a CG and Campanelli had 3 RBI and threw out both attempted base stealers pic.twitter.com/dTvMfpVjh0
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 5, 2018
When St. Joseph’s recruited Joseph Murphy, an Axcess Baseball All-Long Island RHP in 2017 at Suffolk CC, they did so with the intention of pitching important games against conference rival Farmingdale State. After all, he was second in the nation in lowest ERA at 1.21. In order words, he was brought in to pitch a game like today.
With both teams having won their first game of the tournament, it was a crucial game to build momentum and enter championship Sunday in position to only have to win once.
Murphy was everything they could’ve hope–and more–spinning a complete game gem, allowing 0 ER, striking out six and surrendering just six hits and one walk. The junior was efficient too, needing just 104 pitches and showing plenty of emotion on the mound after each inning-ending strikeout in the second, third and fourth innings. The only run he yielded was unearned in the seventh inning and he followed it up with a rally-killing 6-6-3 twin killing.
The tone for the game was set immediately when Tyler Costa lofted a flyball to left-center field and it was dropped for a two-base error. After a fly ball advanced him to third base with one-out, the red-hot Paul Britt stayed red-hot with an RBI triple to deep center field (close to 400 feet away). The All-Long Island first baseman is now batting .412 with an OBP of .500 and SLG of .739. Those numbers put him in serious consideration for not just Skyline Conference Player of the Year but also All-American status. But first, they had a game to win.
Farmingdale’s starter for the second consecutive day was David Otero Jr., who did a great job of stranding Britt at third.
In the second inning, however, he was replaced after falling behind Anthony Raucci 3-0. Reliever Joe Marino wound up walking him, allowing a single to Matthew Burnett and an RBI single to Dan Campanelli (more on him later). Tyler Crafa dropped in a single of his own, and that was it for Marino, who gave way to RHP Logan Hicks. The Kentucky native did a terrific job of keeping the Golden Eagles at bay. Aside from hitting Britt and bringing in a run, he did escaped otherwise unscathed.
Trailing 4-0, the Rams were still very much in the game. Coming from somebody who has played in two Skyline Conference tournaments, I knew the game was far from over. Murphy, however, did not allow the Rams to even sniff scoring position, as he used his repertoire of a 86 MPH fastball, 73 MPH knuckleball as well as a 70 MPH curveball to keep the Rams guessing all afternoon.
He worked around a Jake Jacobs single in the second, and a stand up triple by Joe Roche in the third to keep the shutout in tact.
The Golden Eagles added on in the fifth inning when Tyler Sanderson crushed a leadoff double to left-center field and advanced to third on a passed ball. He scored on a botched groundball by the shortstop to extend the lead to 5-0.
Tyler Schrimpf blooped a one-out single that Raucci almost made a spectacular diving catch on in the fifth inning. After Kenneth Johntry singled to right field to get a runner in scoring position, Schrimpf attempt to steal third was thwarted by Dan Campanelli to end the rally.
In the bottom of the sixth, Joe Roche reached on an error on a dropped infield pop up, but was promptly thrown out attempting to steal second by Campanelli.
Lou Puccio came on in the seventh inning and he allowed a run on an RBI single by Campanelli to make it 6-0.
The Rams got on the board in the seventh inning. Jacob led off with an infield single to the shortstop that he beat out and advanced on the ensuing throwing error. Nick Soriano smacked an RBI single to right. When it appeared the Rams might have life, Murphy came up aces with a tailor-made 6-6-3 double play to end the inning.
In the top of the ninth, the Golden Eagles extended the lead to 7-1 when Campanelli hit a sac fly to score Matthew Burnett for his third RBI of the game.
Murphy went back out for the ninth and retired the side in order with the final out coming via strikeout for his sixth of the game.
The loss put the Rams on the precipice of elimination, as they would have to play No. 4 USMMA in the loser’s bracket, with the winner advancing to play St. Joseph’s on Sunday morning.
