Kochiss Delivers Game-Winning Hit In 6-5 Win Over No. 16 Southern Maine

GORHAM, Maine – Endicott junior third baseman Mike Kochiss (Fairfield, Conn.) knocked in a pair of runs in the top of the ninth inning to aid the Gulls to a 6-5 win over No. 16 nationally ranked Southern Maine on Wednesday evening.

Trailing 5-4 in the top of the ninth, Kochiss hammered a two-out, two-run double to right field that plated Dan Cacciola (Saugus, Mass.) and Michael DeDonato (Chelmsford, Mass.), and also gave Endicott a 6-5 lead with three outs remaining in the contest.

Davarn Nova (Buzzards Bay, Mass.), who entered the game in the eighth, closed out the ninth in 1-2-3 fashion (two fly outs, one strikeout swinging) to extend the Gulls' winning streak to three straight games. Nova earned the win (5-3) on two innings of work out of the pen, one run (earned), a walk, and one strikeout.

Southern Maine's Matt Correale (Peabody, Mass.) took the loss (0-2) on 1 2/3 innings, one hit, two runs (both earned), and one free pass.

Kochiss gave the Gulls a 1-0 lead in the top of the first with an RBI single, before Matthew Paola (Middlebury, Conn.) made it 2-0 on a hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded. The Huskies then responded with three runs over the next two innings prior to another RBI base hit from Kochiss in the fifth.

Southern Maine eventually outscored Endicott 2-1 in the seventh and eighth innings, combined, but the Gulls had the final say late in the contest for the third straight matchup between the two programs.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott has won the last three meetings against Southern Maine, all via late inning rallies.
• Earlier this season, Paola hit a two-out, bases loaded walk-off single against the Huskies to lift the Gulls to a 4-3 victory on March 30.
• Paola also drove in the game-winning run in the top of the 11th inning against Southern Maine last year on April 15.
• Kochiss went 3-for-5 with one run scored and four RBI (tied career-high) in today's win. Kochiss also extended his hitting streak to 13 straight games with his RBI single in the first inning.
• Nick Berno (St. Albans, Vt.) posted a 2-for-5 performance from the leadoff spot. Berno now has nine multi-hit games this season.
• The Gulls are 7-2 on the road this season.
• Endicott used eight pitchers today, and four of them threw at least one scoreless inning.
• Victor Molle (Peabody, Mass.) highlighted the group by bridging the gap for 2 1/3 scoreless frames from the bottom of the second to the end of the fourth.

FOR THE FOES

• The Huskies are ranked No. 16 in both the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/College Baseball NCAA Division III poll and the D3baseball.com national poll.
• Southern Maine's 1-2-3 hitters went a combined 7-for-11 with three runs scored and one RBI.
• Brandon Martins (Manorville, N.Y.) led the trio with a 3-for-4 day at the plate.
• Sam Dexter (Oakland, Maine), who 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI, drew a bases loaded walk in the second to give the Huskies a 2-1 lead in the second, at the time.
• Southern Maine scored its final run in the eighth on a wild pitch before Endicott rallied in the ninth.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (19-9) travels to Nichols this Saturday for a conference doubleheader matchup at 12/2:30 PM. Southern Maine (18-8) hosts Babson in a non-conference game at the USM Baseball Stadium at 3:30 p.m. 

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