KINGS POINT, N.Y. (May 10, 2025) – Trailing by a 1-0 margin through five innings, the top-seeded U.S. Merchant Marine Academy baseball team put together consecutive three-run frames to defeat third-seeded Farmingdale State and advance to Skyline Championship Sunday. USMMA improved to 28-13, while Farmingdale State fell to 23-14.
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Freshman
Braden Vazquez (Missouri City, Texas) finished 2-for-4 with an inside-the-park home run and three RBIs, while senior
Danny Heck (Massillon, Ohio) was 1-for-3 with two RBIs and classmate
Jack Millen (Shelby, N.C.) went 2-for-4 with one RBI. Senior
Jacob Syversen (Land O'Lakes, Fla.) improved to 6-0 after striking out six and allowing just one run in 6.0 innings of work.
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The Rams grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second after a leadoff double was followed by a single and a sacrifice fly.
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USMMA, meanwhile, had its first nine batters retired before Millen led off the fourth with a single.
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The Mariners benefitted from two errors in the sixth to grab the lead with a three-run frame. Vazquez led off with a double before Millen promptly followed with an RBI single. Sophomore
Landon Troutt (Fairfield, Calif.) then laid down a sacrifice bunt, but reached safely on a throwing error. Sophomore
Tommy Chiappetti (Buckeye, Ariz.) then reached on a fielder's choice, but another throwing error left the Mariners with runners on second and third. Heck followed with a two-out, two-run single as USMMA took a 3-1 lead.
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Syversen worked a quick 1-2-3 sixth before USMMA tacked on three more runs in the seventh. Sophomore
Ricardo Olivares (Flower Mound, Texas) walked to lead off the inning and classmate
Christian Gamez (Kent Island, Md.) was plunked to quickly give USMMA two on with no outs. Vazquez followed with an inside-the-park, three-run homer that made it a 6-1 ballgame.
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The Rams pulled to within 6-2 in the eighth on a one-out single and back-to-back, two-out singles.
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Junior
Caden Pierce (Marietta, Ga.) struck out two batters in a 1-2-3 ninth.
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The Mariners advance to Skyline Championship Sunday and will face third-seeded Farmingdale State tomorrow, May 11, at 11 a.m. at Bartoszek Field.
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