Marinelli 4-For-4 With Three RBI and Richardello 3-For-3 With Career-Best Three Runs

CHESTERTOWN, Md. – Senior Nick Marinelli (Ellicott City, Md./Marriotts Ridge) went 4-for-4 with three RBI and sophomore Garrett Richardello (Coventry, Conn./East Catholic) went 3-for-3 with a career-high three runs scored to lead host Washington College to a 9-5 victory over visiting Catholic on Thursday afternoon at Athey Baseball Park in a non-conference baseball contest.

Washington (7-5) got a run in the bottom of the first inning when freshman Charlie Meder (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlowe) tripled to right field to score sophomore Bryan Baquer (Woodbridge, Va./Osbourn Park) for the game's first run.

The Shoremen took advantage of a pair of Catholic (9-6) errors in the bottom of the second to put a three-spot on the scoreboard to make it 4-0.  Sophomore Brian Alexa (Silver Spring, Md./Good Counsel) scored on an error by the Cardinals to make it 2-0 with one away.  With two outs, Marinelli singled to right-center to plate both Richardello and senior Pat Kinsella (Guilford, Conn./Guilford) to cap the three-run outburst.

The Cardinals, after not getting a hit in the first four times to the plate, came alive in the top of the fifth with three runs to trim the WC lead to 4-3.  Nick Clary scored on a fielding mishap by the Shoremen to get the visitors on the scoreboard with nobody out.  With two outs, Brendan Breslin singled through the left side to drive in both Paul Burmester and Marc Hanna to reduce the lead to one run.

Richardello scored on a one-out double off the bat of junior Scott Matthews (Goshen, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) to make it 5-3 in the last of the sixth and Marinelli came home from third on a two-out wild pitch for the inning's second and final run and made it 6-3.

Burmester cut the Washington lead to 6-4 in the top of the seventh when he scored on a base hit through the right side by Joe Kelly with two outs.

WC made it 9-4 in the last of the seventh with a trio of runs with two away.  Matthews doubled to right-center to chase in both Alexa and Richardello and Matthews would come around to score on a Marinelli single to right-center.

Catholic got one back in the top of the eighth on a Burmester one-out sacrifice fly that sent home Wyatt Schmidt for the game's final run.

Washington, which had 14 hits in the win, got a three RBI, two-hit performance from Matthews and a pair of hits from Baquer.  On the mound, freshman pitcher Billy Griffin (Middletown, Md./Middletown) got his first collegiate victory and is 1-0 on the season.  He went 5 1/3 innings, giving up four hits, three runs, while walking two and striking out six, establishing a career-best in punchouts.

Burmester went 2-for-3 with two runs scored as the Cardinals had seven hits in the contest.  Breslin plated two for Catholic.  On the mound, Colin Kelly took the loss to drop to 0-1.  He went the first two innings, giving up four runs, just one of which was earned.

The Shoremen are home once again tomorrow afternoon with a 3:00 p.m. game versus Free State rival Frostburg State.