TOWSON, Md. -- Matt Brinker launched a go-ahead solo home run in the top of the ninth inning as the Northeastern Huskies (34-18, 22-7 CAA) outlasted the Towson Tigers (21-32, 8-21 CAA) by a score of 8-7 on Friday afternoon at Schuerholz Park, taking the series in game two.
After falling behind 5-4 in the fourth inning, the Huskies rallied with a three-run sixth to retake the lead, only to see Towson answer with a two-run homer in the seventh to tie it at seven. Brinker settled it in the ninth with his eighth home run of the season, and Andrew Rogovic slammed the door with 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win.
- Northeastern broke the scoreless tie in the third inning when Henry DiGiorgio doubled to left field and moved to third on a fly out by Tyler Harmony. Harrison Feinberg then ripped an RBI double to left center to bring home DiGiorgio. Feinberg stole third and came around to score on a throwing error by the third baseman for a 2-0 Husky lead.
- The Huskies added two more in the fourth. AJ Aschettino singled to right field and advanced to second on a groundout. Carmelo Musacchia singled up the middle to plate Aschettino, then stole second. Musacchia scored on a throwing error to make it 4-0.
- Towson erupted for five runs in the bottom of the fourth on a walk, a hit-by-pitch, an RBI walk, a two-RBI single, and a two-RBI single to take a 5-4 lead. Cooper Maher entered in relief and got a groundout to end the threat.
- Northeastern answered with a three-run sixth to retake the lead. DiGiorgio drew a walk and Harmony followed with a walk of his own to put two runners on. After a Feinberg fly out, Ryan Gerety singled to right field to score DiGiorgio, advancing to second on the throw. Brinker then singled to first base, driving in both Gerety and Harmony as a throwing error allowed Brinker to move up to second, giving the Huskies a 7-5 advantage.
- Towson pulled even in the seventh on a two-run homer to left field to tie the game at 7-7. Rogovic entered in relief with a runner on and struck out the final two batters of the inning to strand the go-ahead run.
- Brinker put the Huskies ahead for good in the ninth, hammering a solo home run to left field on a 2-0 count for the 8-7 lead. Brinker also reached base via hit-by-pitch and finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs on the day.
- Luc Rising worked 3.2 innings in the start, allowing five runs on four hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Maher took over and delivered 2.2 innings of two-run relief, while Rogovic (3-2) earned the win with 2.2 scoreless innings, allowing no hits and striking out four batters.
- Gerety went 2-for-5 with an RBI, while Feinberg finished 1-for-5 with an RBI double and a stolen base. DiGiorgio reached base three times with a double and a walk, scoring twice.
- Feinberg and Musacchia each stole a pair of bases, pushing Northeastern over its previous program record of 196 stolen bases set last year. Their 197 stolen bases is good for top in the NCAA.
- The Huskies have now won all but one of their CAA weekend series this season, improving to 22-7 in conference play. Northeastern has also won a season-high sixth game in a row.
The series wraps up on Saturday, May 16th at 2 p.m. at Schuerholz Park, with the game streaming on FloCollege.
