Sebastian DiMauro
Steve McLaughlin
2
Winner Univ. of Hartford HARTFORD 14-5
1
Villanova VU 8-17
Winner
Univ. of Hartford HARTFORD
14-5
2
Final
1
Villanova VU
8-17
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Univ. of Hartford HARTFORD 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 3 0
Villanova VU 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 6 0

W: Gauthier, Kyle (3-1) L: Richardson (0-3) S: Ferguson, Collin (3)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Baseball Sweeps Villanova and Extends Winning Streak to Six with 2-1 Victory

THE BASICS:

RESULT: Hartford 2, Villanova 1
LOCATION: Villanova Ballpark (Plymouth Meeting, Penn.)
RECORDS: Hartford (14-5, 2-1 AE); Villanova (8-17, 0-0 Big East)

THE LEAD:
A very strong performance on the mound from Kyle Gauthier and important holds from the bullpen helped carry the Hartford baseball team to a tightknit, 2-1 victory over Villanova on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks swept the series from the Wildcats and extended their winning streak to six.
 
Gauthier went six innings on the mound, allowing just one run and striking out four. David MacKinnon came up with the big hit of the day, ripping a two-run single to left for Hartford's lone runs of the day.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
  • In a game that featured a pitcher's duel between Gauthier and Kagan Richardson of the Wildcats, both teams failed to push across a run until the sixth inning. Gauthier shut down the Villanova bats through five innings, allowing just three hits and striking out four.
  • Hartford managed to get onto the scoreboard first thanks to the bat of MacKinnon. After walks from Ashton Bardzell and Dalton Ruch, Aaron Wilson dropped down a bunt single, and then MacKinnon hit a two-run single to left field to boost the Hawks to a 2-0 advantage in the top of the sixth.
  • Villanova bounced back with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning after an RBI single by Max Beerman narrowed the gap from two to one.
  • Gauthier was replaced on the mound by John LaRossa in the seventh inning after a solid day on the hill for the Hawks. LaRossa pitched a clean seventh, and Sebastian DiMauro came on and retired the side in the eighth to hold off the Wildcats.
  • Collin Ferguson took the mound in the ninth to try and secure the save for Hartford, but the Wildcats managed to put two men on with back-to-back walks. Ferguson battled back to strike out the next two batters, and then the Hawks claimed the sweep after a fly out ended the contest. Hartford improved its record to 14-5 on the year.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
  • With a six-game winning streak in hand, this is the longest such streak of victories for the squad since 2014, when Hartford won six in a row against Albany (3), Quinnipiac, Rhode Island, and Binghamton.
  • Pitching dominated the entire series for Hartford. Villanova only managed to score two runs through the weekend, while the Hawks pushed across 21 in the series sweep.
  • MacKinnon has collected at least two hits in eight of his last nine games, and the junior has raised his average up over the .400 mark in his recent surge at the plate.
  • Despite winning the matchup, Hartford was only able to muster three hits in the game. That is the least amount of hits needed in a Hawks win since beating Stony Brook 1-0 with just three hits on March 29, 2014. Former Hawks great Sean Newcomb earned the win that day, holding the Sea Wolves to just one hit in the contest.
  • With the 14-5 record, the Hawks are off to one of the best starts to a season in program history. Hartford last started 14-5 in 1988 under Dan Gooley, and Gooley's group would go on to finish 29-12 that season.

NEXT UP:
After a stretch of five games in five days, Hartford will take the next two days off before heading to Worcester, Mass., to go to battle with Holy Cross at 5 p.m. on Tuesday evening. Live stats will be available on HartfordHawks.com, and be sure to check out @HartfordBASE on Twitter for in-game updates and for news about the program.

 
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