Underdog Seton Hall Captures Big East Baseball Crown

It was hard for the Pirates baseball team of Seton Hall to dream big back in January. They were seeded 11th in the Big East.

Now they can scoff at those predictions. They are the 2011 Big East champions.

Playing at Bright House Field Sunday in the championship game, Seton Hall knocked off St. John's 4-2 for the Big East title, their third in school history and first in 10 years.

In the past two days, Seton Hall knocked off the Big East's top two seeds: Conneticut and St. John's.

The Pirates, with the win, will receive a berth in the NCAA regionals which begin play this week at a site for the Pirates to be determined.

Seton Hall used smallball to beat St. John's. A run in the first, third and two in the fifth was all the Pirates would need, despite only mustering five hits to St. John's 12.

"Early in the season we weren't coming up with those clutch hits and now we are coming up with those clutch hits," centerfielder Zack Granite said. "In key situations we are putting up runs."

With the bases loaded, shortstop A.J. Rusbarsky got an infield single and on a bad throw from St. John's shortstop Joe Panik on the play, Granite and Sean Gusrang scampered home and it proved to be all the runs Seton Hall would need.

Pirates second baseman Mike Genovese, despite the preseason prediction, felt his team had a shot to win the title.

"We had no respect all season," Genovese said. ""We knew within ourselves we could win the Big East championship. We knew it may take a while for us [to improve], fight and claw our way through it. But we knew we could do it.

"Don't get me wrong, St. John's is a great team. I have a buddy on that team. They are well-coached, just like us. Coaches have done a great job all year. They were preparing us all year.

"We were in close games all year so we were used to this. When [winning pitcher] Joey DiRocco pitches, it's going to be a close game because it will be our best guy against their best guy."