SUNY Niagara ran out of magic.
A day after the top-seeded Thunderwolves rallied to stay alive in the NJCAA Division III World Series, they needed one more comeback. This time, SUNY Niagara couldn’t pull out another miracle.
The Thunderwolves saw their season end with an 8-6 loss to No. 5 Dallas-Richland in 11 innings at Falcon Park in Auburn. A two-run home run in the top of the 11th by Bobby Gutierrez proved to be the difference.
But SUNY Niagara did have another major rally in the game after falling behind 6-0 in the fifth inning. The Thunderwolves gave up three hits and two walks in the frame and then allowed runs on two errors and a hit batter.
They slowly chipped away at the deficit over the next three innings, however. Braeden Dyck singled to right centerfield in the sixth to put SUNY Niagara on the board and Christopher Finocchario doubled down the left field line to plate a pair of runs in the seventh.
Nigel Sebastianelli hit a solo blast to right in the eighth and Weston Thompson drove in a run on an RBI single to left center to pull within one. In their final chance, Dyck hit a sacrifice fly to right to score the game-tying run after Cooper Rossano started the inning with a single and advanced on a passed ball and a fielder’s choice.
SUNY Niagara nearly faced disaster in the top of the 10th when a single, a passed ball and a walk put runners on the corners with two outs. But Liam Hadfield was able to get out of the jam by striking out Robby Lopez to end the inning unscathed.
The Thunderwolves had runners on first and second in the bottom of the inning, but couldn’t bring either home. Sebastianelli singled in the bottom of the 11th and advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Catcher Dalton Harper had a 3-1 count on the next at-bat, but fouled out to first base and Braden Hill struck out swinging to end the game.
Sebastianelli went 3 for 6 with an RBI in his final game for SUNY Niagara, while Harper went 2 for 4. Starter Nolan Feidt allowed two earned runs on one hit and four walks over 4 ⅓ innings. Hadfield tossed five innings of relief, allowing two earned runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out five.
The Thunderwolves finished the season 51-2, setting a school record for wins in a season.