THE BASICS:
 
RESULT:  Yale 13, Hartford 11
LOCATION: Fiondella Field (West Hartford, Conn.)
RECORDS:  Hartford (3-12, 1-2 America East), Yale (9-10, 0-0 Ivy)
WP: Griffin Dey (2-0) LP: Jake Regula (0-1)
 

THE LEAD: 
The University of Hartford baseball team (3-12, 1-2 America East) dropped a back-and-forth battle against Yale on Wednesday, falling 13-11 at Fiondella Field. The game featured nine lead changes and was tied at 11-11 in the top of the ninth inning before the Bulldogs (9-10, 0-0 Ivy) broke through for a pair of runs to take the control for good.
 
The Hawks managed to get the tying run on base in the bottom of the ninth when third baseman TJ Ward drew a one-out walk and designated hitter Bryce Walker was hit by a pitch. Yale reliever Griffin Dye (2-0), who started the game as the Bulldogs first baseman, got Hartford senior Dalton Ruch to ground into a double play to end the game.
 
In the top of the ninth Yale shortstop Brian Ronai connected for a one-out home run off Hartford reliever Jake Regula (0-1), which stood as the game-winning run. Hartford catcher Erik Ostberg also homered in the game, blasting a three-run shot to right-center in the fifth inning. Ostberg and center fielder Ashton Bardzell led the Hawks with three hits apiece, while Simon Whiteman and Benny Wanger each recorded three hits for Yale.
 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Hartford struck in the first when Ostberg doubled and scored on an error.
• Catcher Alex Boos helped Yale even the score in the third, doubling to left and coming home on a single from Whiteman.
• Dey doubled and made it 2-1 in the fourth when he scored on a double by Ronai.
• The Hawks added a pair in the bottom half of the inning, with Bardzell and Ward picking up RBI singles.
• Yale got both runs back in the fifth when third baseman Alec Hoeschel lined a two-out single to center, plating Wanger and Whiteman.
• Ruch led off the fifth with a walk and advanced to second on a single by David MacKinnon, setting the stage for Ostberg's three-run bomb deep over the fence in right-center, making it 6-4 Hartford.
• The Bulldogs regained control with three runs on three hits in the sixth. Boos, Tim DeGraw and Whiteman each drove in a run before Hartford reliever Drew Farkas came in to get the Hawks out of the inning.
• Trailing 7-6, Hartford scored twice in the sixth. Ward walked, Ruch singled and took advantage of a pair of wild pitches by Sam Boies. Ward scored on the second wild pitch and Ruch came home on a sac fly by right fielder Nick Campana, making it 8-7.
• Yale scored four runs in the eighth, the first coming on a bases-loaded walk by Whiteman and the other three coming on a bases-clearing triple to right-center from Wanger.
• The Hawks evened the score at 11-11 with three runs on two hits in the eighth. Ruch drove in the first run with a single through the left side and MacKinnon picked up an RBI with a groundout to third. Ruch later came around to score on an error.
• Ronai's home run put the Bulldogs in front 12-11 in the top of the ninth and left fielder DeGraw made it 13-11 with a sac fly later in the inning.

 
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• With his 3-for-3 showing at the plate, Ostberg improved his average to .500 (28-for-56) on the season. He leads the team in average, hits, doubles (9), home runs (5), RBI (15), walks (13) and on-base percentage (.586).
• Among the eight Hawks with at least 40 at-bats, Ostberg also ranks first with just five strikeouts.
• Bardzell notched his third multi-hit performance in the past four games. He ranks second on the team with a .397 average.
• The Hawks are average 6.33 runs per game on offense this season, but allowing 11.8 runs per game.
• With 11 runs on hits against Yale, it marked the 7^th time this season the Hawks have recorded at least 10 hits and the third time they've scored at least 10 runs. It was also the eighth time Hartford has surrendered at least 10 runs.

 
 
NEXT UP:
The Hawks will face a quick turnaround when they host host Holy Cross on Thursday, March 30, at 3:30 p.m. The Hawks are 5-7 all-time against Holy Cross and have won the past two meetings. Hartford's last win against the Crusaders at home came in 2009, when Mike Amendola lifted a two-out walkoff single left, giving the Hawks a 13-12 victory in the 10^th inning.