Seconds after the final pitch was thrown, senior right fielder Eddie Posavec and redshirt sophomore third baseman Justin Yurchak ran toward each other and chest-bumped behind the mound. Standing just in front of them, junior catcher Jason Agresti shook hands with redshirt junior starting pitcher Jacob Wloczewski, who had just pitched a one-hit shutout over seven innings.
With that 1-0 win over Hartford in the nightcap of a doubleheader on Friday, the Binghamton baseball team clinched the America East (AE) regular-season title. For the second straight year, the Bearcats (30-11, 15-4 AE) will head to the AE Conference Championship with the No. 1 seed.
BU completed a three-game sweep over the Hawks (20-28, 8-13 AE) on Saturday in its final series of the regular season.
“That was our first goal: to win the regular-season championship,” Wloczewski said. “Hopefully … we can roll right into the tournament and keep playing good baseball.”
In game one, the first of a doubleheader on Friday, sophomore starting pitcher Nick Gallagher tied a program record with his eighth win of the season. Gallagher allowed five hits and one run over six innings in the Bearcats’ 4-1 victory over the Hawks.
With the game tied at one in the fourth inning, junior designated hitter drove in Agresti and advanced freshman second baseman Justin Drpich to third base on a single to center field. Freshman shortstop Greg Satriale lifted a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Drpich.
The Bearcats never looked back from their two-run cushion, and scored another run in the eighth inning. Junior pitcher Dylan Stock notched the save in the ninth after junior pitcher Joe Orlando threw two scoreless innings of relief.
Hartford’s pitching staff struggled early on in the series finale on Saturday. In the first five innings, sophomore starting pitcher Connor Lewis and redshirt junior reliever David Drouin combined to allow eight runs.
Yurchak went 4-for-4 with four RBIs and a walk in Binghamton’s 10-1 victory over the Hawks. Junior southpaw Nick Wegmann was credited with the win after pitching six no-hit innings.
“We have a very deep roster,” Yurchak said. “Everybody’s ready when they’re called upon, and we just want to battle and win games.”
The Bearcats are set to play in the double-elimination AE Conference Championship this week, and will face the winner of No. 4 Albany and No. 5 Maine on Thursday. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m. from Edward A. LeLacheur Park in Lowell, Massachusetts.