BOX SCORE
Boyertown, Pa. (May 16, 2007) – Johns Hopkins senior Rob Sanzillo (Katonah, N.Y.) lifted a 3-run, walk-off home run to right field giving the third-seeded Blue Jays their only lead of the day at the only time that mattered in a 5-4 win over #6 Elizabethtown Wednesday evening in game two of the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Baseball regional at Bear Stadium.
It was the second walk-off homer in as many games at the regional after Gwynedd-Mercy sophomore Tim McMenamin (Maple Shade, N.J.) gave the Griffins a 5-3 win in the opener. Hopkins trailed 3-2 in the sixth when Bear Stadium was hit with a 5:37 rain delay. Elizabethtown added an insurance run after the delay ended and was two outs from advancing in the winner’s bracket before Sanzillo’s blast.
Etown wasted very little time putting runs on the board scoring twice in the top half of the first inning. Ryan White (Lebanon, Pa.) and Mike Donahue (Hatfield, Pa.) hit back-to-back bloop singles to shallow right and leftfield respectively. A groundout moved the runners up and Dean Whetham’s (Wilmington, Del.) groundout scored White. A walk and a single ensued and Etown was up 2-0.
The lead grew to 3-0 when White score his second run of the day in the fifth inning, but Hopkins finally put a pair of runs on the board against Elizabethtown starter Tyler Hoffman (Phoenix, Md.) in the home half of the fifth with the skies threatening. Nate Adelman (Redwood City, Calif.) singled with one out and stole second. He came around on a double by Jonas Fester (Dallas, Texas) and Fester scored on Sanzillo’s single.
The pre-storm winds whipped funnel clouds around the infield before the skies opened with one out and no one on. Both teams went quietly in the sixth inning after play was resumed and White scored again for Etown in the seventh for a 4-2 lead.
Hopkins threatened with the bases loaded and two out in the eighth, but Elizabethtown reliever Chris Minakowski (Roslyn, Pa.) struck out Brett Izzo (Northport, N.Y.) to end the threat.
Etown loaded the bases in the top of the ninth with one out, but failed to score with a fielder’s choice and a groundout.
Adelman opened the bottom of the ninth with a single up the middle and Rodney Francis (Pottstown, Pa.) made a diving catch down the left field line for the first out of the inning. Fester drove another single to center, and Sanzillo homered to end the game.
#3 Johns Hopkins 5, #6 Elizabethtown 4