KINGSTON, R.I. -- Danny Rogers hit a walk-off RBI double in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift top-seeded and No. 4 nationally ranked Salve Regina to an improbable 9-8 victory over the fourth-seeded MIT baseball team in the 2026 NEWMAC Baseball Championship on Sunday morning at Bill Beck Field.
In a game that was halted by rain on Saturday and concluded on Sunday, the Seahawks scored five runs in the fifth inning and three runs in the ninth to overcome an 8-1 deficit to eliminate the Engineers and advance to play Babson in the NEWMAC Championship Round.
THE BASICS:
- Score: Salve Regina 9, MIT 8
- Records: Salve Regina (36-5 overall, 10-6 NEWMAC); MIT (15-21 overall, 10-6 NEWMAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- A Dylan Cimini RBI single gave Salve a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. The Seahawks held the advantage until the top of the third when the MIT bats came to life to give the Engineers a 4-1 advantage.
- Owen Malone singled to lead off the third; Joey Severson then reached on a hit by pitch before Jack Finnegan reached on an error that allowed Malone to score. John Spivey struck out and Dalton Chi grounded out back to the pitcher, but the second MIT run came in to score on an infield single from Zev Moore. John Dwyer followed with another RBI single to make the score 3-1 and forced a pitching change for Salve. James Dempsey wasn't fazed by the change, delivering a single through the right side of the infield to score Zev Moore and increase the MIT lead to 4-1.
- MIT added two more runs in the fifth inning to move ahead 6-1. Zev Moore cashed in on a Dalton Chi leadoff double with an RBI single to right and James Dempsey singled to drive in Moore.
- MIT held a 6-1 advantage as the game moved into the sixth inning but the weather conditions took control of the game forcing a pair of delays for lightning and rain and eventually halting the game with one-out and Jack Finnegan on first base.
- Following the delay, play continued Sunday morning and saw MIT add to its advantage, scoring two runs in the top of the seventh to move ahead 8-1. Malone drove in a run with a fielder's choice RBI and Severson added another with an RBI single down the left field line.
- Faced with its biggest deficit of the tournament, Salve put up five runs in the bottom of the seventh to close the gap to two runs. Jake Harring delivered a two-RBI single and Elliot Hamilton added a two-RBI triple before the final run of the inning scored on a third strike that got away.
- After taking over on the mound in the bottom of the seventh inning, Malone held Salve scoreless in the bottom of the eighth, but the Seahawks rallied in the ninth to win the game.
- Malone got the first out of the ninth, but the next three Salve batters reached base, as Shea Donovan's pinch hit two-RBI double tied the game. With Donovan on second and one out, Malone got James Anastasopoulos to fly out to right field for the second out. With two away, Rogers doubled to right center to score Donovan and end the game.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Dempsey finished the contest 4-for-5 with a pair of RBIs. The first year recorded three multi-hit games while committing just one error at first base in his first postseason.
- Zev Moore was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBIs.
- First year starting pitcher Justin Lin worked around eight walks on a rainy Saturday to go 5.0 innings while giving up just one earned run.
- After opening the season 0-9, MIT posted a winning record over its final 27 games, going 15-12 with a 10-6 record in NEWMAC play in the first season under head coach Chris Morris.
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