CNE CHAMPIONSHIP: Stellar Pitching, Defense Lead No. 3/4 Endicott Past Nichols, 3-0

BEVERLY, Mass. — The No. 3/4 nationally ranked Endicott baseball team shut out Nichols, 3-0, to clinch the inaugural Conference of New England (CNE) and the fourth straight overall conference championship on Sunday afternoon at North Field.

WP (5-0): John Connolly (Attleboro, Mass.) — 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 5 BB, 5 K
LP (9-2): John Steed (Vernon, Conn.) — 7.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
SV (1): Charlie Hale (Brookline, N.H.) — 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

In a magnificent pitching duel between Steed and Connolly, the Gulls were able to prevail with just enough offense, some highlight defensive plays, and stellar efforts from the pitching trio of Connolly, Brady Stuart (Hudson, Mass.), and Hale to close out the Conference of New England Tournament.

Zach Stephenson (Mansfield, Mass.) was named the Most Outstanding Player after batting .583 AVG / .615 OBP / 1.167 SLG with two homers, four RBI's, and playing a lockdown center field for the Gulls over the three tournament games.

In a scoreless battle, the Gulls finally capitalized in the bottom of the sixth after back-to-back singles to lead off the inning from Stephenson and Danny MacDougall (Taunton, Mass.). The two then pulled off a double steal to place runners on second and third with nobody out in the frame.

Joey Frammartino (North Reading, Mass.) and Kyle Grabowski (Westfield, Mass.) each drove in a run via sac fly to center field, giving the Gulls the 2-0 edge.

They tacked on another after Stephenson crushed his second homer of the tournament (third hit of the day) in the bottom of the eighth, making it a 3-0 ball game.

After Stuart's two innings of scoreless relief, Hale entered to close out the Bison. With two outs and runners on first and second, Caleb Clark (Gloucester, Mass.), who replaced Frammartino as a defensive sub in the top of the inning, raced on and laid out to track down a looping liner, ending the game in dramatic fashion.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• The Gulls have won four straight CCC/CNE championships, and 10 overall.
• Stephenson made a miraculous home run robbery in the top of the fourth inning. He leapt over the left center field wall to haul down a would-be go-ahead solo shot for the Bison.
• Hale recorded the first save of his career.
• The Blue and Green have not lost a playoff game to a conference opponent since the 2023 CCC Championship (5/13/23; 5-2).
• The Gulls pitching staff stranded 14 Nichols baserunners.

WHAT'S NEXT

No. 3/4 Endicott (38-4) will tune in for the NCAA Selection Show tomorrow at 12 PM to see where they will be traveling for NCAA Regionals next weekend. Nichols (26-18) sees its 2025 campaign come to a close. 

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)