Quinnipiac hosted Central Connecticut State on Tuesday, April 22, and used a four-run fourth inning to blow the game open in a 10-3 victory.
Freshman outfielder Chase Camac went 3-for-4 with an RBI and three runs scored, while freshman right-hander Kevin Rusinak delivered four strong innings on the mound to pick up his first collegiate win.
“I feel like I’m in a better mental space now, really seeing the ball better and believing in myself,” Camac said.
The Blue Devils struck first when Senior infielder Louis Jordan singled to center in the top of the first and advanced to third when senior catcher Christian Smith’s throw on a steal attempt sailed into center field.
Senior designated hitter Frankie Ferrentino lined an RBI single to left to put CCSU up 1-0. Still, sophomore third baseman Ian Nilsen ended the threat with an unassisted double play at the hot corner.
But the game would take an ugly turn when, in the second inning, Sophomore second baseman Brandon O’Neill’s bat clipped the inside of Smith’s mask on his follow-through. The bat caught his lip and teeth as Smith walked off the field under his own power.
“A little banged up,” Quinnipiac head coach John Delaney said. “Got stitches, chipped tooth.”
Redshirt sophomore catcher Cole Constable stepped behind the plate, and Rusinak kept the Blue Devils off the board from there. He stranded runners in scoring position in both the second and third innings, retiring the side each time.
“He was in the zone,” Delaney said. “He did a good job controlling himself in stressful situations and was able to get the outs we needed.”
The Bobcats scratched across a run in the third when Camac singled to left center and eventually scored on a groundout by freshman center fielder Caden Williamson.
The fourth inning blew the game open after freshman left-hander Brandon Candelora exited and sophomore right-hander Noah Terzo lasted just a third of the inning.
Freshman second baseman Peyton Vancas singled to left center to bring home Nilsen for the go-ahead run. Williamson ripped a two-run double through the right side that scored Camac and Vancas and junior first baseman Kyle Garbowski followed with an RBI single up the middle to make it 5-1.
“We go down like two outs and no one on base, and then we find a way to get guys on and then have big hits from there,” Delaney said. “A lot of resiliency.”
Camac and Vancas struck again in the fifth. Camac singled to right to drive in senior shortstop Alex Irizarry and Vancas singled up the middle to plate Camac, pushing the lead to 7-1. Delaney said the breakout from Camac had been building for weeks.
“His average wasn’t high, but we’ve had a lot of games where he’s had really good games with no hits,” Delaney said. “A lot of hard contact, a lot of bad luck. It was just a matter of time before it started falling.”
Williamson delivered the play of the afternoon to open the sixth, laying out for a fully extended diving catch in center that robbed Ferrentino of extra bases.
“Me and Marino were fired up,” Camac said. “We were yelling at him, ‘Let’s go.’ He actually hit his head pretty hard. He’s fine, but he was just a little shaken up.”
Junior catcher Owen Arias took the wind out of the moment two batters later with a two-run homer to left off graduate right-hander Josh Lajoie that cut the lead to 7-3.
But Garbowski answered immediately in the bottom half with a solo shot of his own to right that regained the five-run cushion at 8-3.
The Bobcats would score two more in the eighth on an RBI single from junior designated hitter Jack Balcer and a bases-loaded walk drawn by graduate outfielder James Marino.
Rusinak earned the win after scattering five hits and one unearned run across 4.0 innings with three strikeouts.
“I was ready to go more,” Rusinak said. “Just finally feel like myself again, which is good.”
Lajoie struck out four across 3.0 innings of relief. Freshman right-hander Teagan Beames worked a scoreless eighth, and freshman right-hander Langdon Hazen closed the door with three punchouts in a perfect ninth. The defense turned two double plays on the day, a trend Delaney praised.
“Those are gut-wrenching moments for the other team because you shut down everything,” Delaney said. “Our defense has made significant improvements the last two, three weeks.”
Quinnipiac will look to extend its four-game win streak as it hosts Mount St. Mary’s for a three-game series beginning Friday, April 24. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.
