Coast Guard Academy Sports Roundup

The Coast Guard Academy lost its final Florida game of its early baseball season on Saturday to Salem State University while the softball team defeated Anderson University and lost to Bluffton University. The Bears also competed in the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. The following information was provided by Jason Southard, sports information director at the Coast Guard Academy:

Baseball: Salem State 5, Coast Guard 4

Salem State scored an unearned run in the bottom of the eighth and beat Coast Guard 5-4 in the Bears final game at the Gene Cusic Classic.

Coast Guard which got a solid outing from starting pitcher Riley Beecher, led 4-2 after six innings before the Vikings scored twice in the seventh to tie the game before taking the lead in the eighth.

Beecher posted the Bears best start of the season as he went seven innings and allowed seven hits and four runs, just two earned while walking two and striking out one.

Junior closer Tyler Vieira (2-1) came on to start the eighth and got stuck with the loss as the unearned run scored with two outs.

Junior Nolan Gallagher’s RBI single in the first gave the Bears a 1-0 lead. Coast Guard trailed 2-1 before scoring twice in the fifth as senior Eddie Kalankiewicz walked was sacrificed to second, stole third and scored on a throwing error by the catcher before junior Tyler Babkiewich doubled, stole third and another throwing error allowing him to score as the Bears took a 3-2 lead.

Coast Guard added a run in the sixth on an RBI double by Babkiewich for a 4-2 lead. Babkiewich was 3 for 4 with three doubles as he accounted for three of Coast Guard’s four hits.

The Bears return north with a record of 3-5 and open the northern portion of the schedule on Wednesday at Johnson & Wales.

Softball: Coast Guard 10, Anderson 4; Bluffton 4, Coast Guard 0

Holli Bastinck and Stacia Sarwinski both hit two-run homers in the first inning as Coast Guard beat Anderson 10-4 in its final game at the Rebel Games. Coast Guard lost to Bluffton 4-0 in the first game of the day.

In the opener, Chloe Shell fired a two-hit shutout and Bluffton scored three times in the top of the first and never looked back. Emily Manahan had the big hit a two-run double in the first.

In the 3rd inning Bluffton pulled off a double steal with Lindsay Robertson stealing second and Chelsea Weitz swiping home.

The Bears only hits were a single in the second by Sarwinski and a single by Bastinck in the 7th.

In game two, Bastinck homered, her third of the season, and added an RBI triple as the Bears jumped out a quick 4-0 lead, led 9-2 in the fifth before winning 10-4.

Coast Guard scored four runs in the fifth with Devin Fellman, Jesse Richardson and Bastinck all driving in runs.

The Bears closed the scoring with a run in the seventh on an RBI single by Richardson.

Coast Guard is off for the week before beginning the northern portion of the schedule when then host Castleton State in a doubleheader on Saturday

Wrestling

Freshman Nate Giorgio has been impressive in his debut at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships this weekend.

Giorgio needed just 45 seconds to pin his opponent, Daniel Mendoza from Lutheran, seeded fifth, in his opening match of the NCAA Championship before earning a 10-4 decision over fourth seeded Riki Reynolds from Mount Union, to earn a spot in the semifinals which will take on Saturday.

Giorgio, the 125 pound New England champion was not seeded in the tournament.

He will face top-seeded Nathan Fitzenreider from North Central (Ill.) Saturday for a spot in the championship match.