With the game tied 6-6 and two men on base, Nick Santomauro '10 slammed the winning double over the short stop's head into left center, allowing two runs to score.
"I was just trying to work it the other way," Santomauro said. "I hadn't seen the ball too well before that, so I just tried to put the barrel on it, and I hit it in the gap."
The hit was Santomauro's only hit of the game. He now leads the Big Green with a batting average of .383 on the season.
Dartmouth (6-9, 4-0 Ivy) had been trailing Siena (4-21, 1-5 Metro Atlantic Athletic) by a score of 6-3 at the start of the bottom of the eighth inning. Siena pitcher Zach Hartman walked in two runs to make the score 6-5.
"We had really good at bats at the end of the game, even with guys taking walks to get into scoring position," head coach Bob Whalen said after the game.
After a pitching change, Jeff Onstott '11 worked an 0-2 count to 3-2 before hitting a sacrifice fly to left field. This allowed David Turnbull '12, who was on third, to tag up and score Dartmouth's sixth run, and set up Santomauro's game-winning hit.
Onstott finished the game with two RBIs.
Lefthander Marco Mariscal '12 earned the win after a 23-pitch relief effort. He allowed three hits and striking out two in one and two-thirds innings of scoreless work. The win was the first of his collegiate career.
Finishing the game for the Big Green was Ryan Smith '11, who gave up no hits and struck out one in the scoreless ninth inning. He was credited with his fourth save of the season and now has an ERA of 5.40.
The Saints committed five errors during the game, and only two of Dartmouth's eight runs were earned. The Big Green, on the other hand, made just one fielding error.
"It's something we emphasize -- we didn't do a good job with the bat, so they allowed us to get on base without paying," Whalen said. "It helped out a lot."
Starting pitcher Colin Britton '11 lasted into the fifth inning, striking out four Siena players and issuing just two free passes. He was replaced by Dan Ternowchek '11 after giving up three runs in the top of the fifth off of three hits. Britton allowed six hits and three earned runs during the outing.
After two scoreless innings, Siena put a run on the scoreboard during the third inning after a Big Green error and two hits. In the bottom of the third, Dartmouth tied up the game 1-1 as a bunt and later an error allowed Johnathon Santopadre '09 to cross home plate.
Dartmouth stranded eight men on base while Siena left six during the game. Siena outhit Dartmouth 12-6.
William Cardona led Siena in hitting with four hits, scoring two of the Saints' six runs.
Siena's leading slugger, Dan Paolini, who is hitting .416 this season, drilled two hits during the game.
"I think we need to bring more energy to the table," Joe Sclafani '12 said. "We played really flat today."
Whalen attributed this flatness to the team's focus on the new stadium.
"We got into the game and it was like we forgot we had a game," Whalen said.
Still, the Big Green players were happy to win the first game at the new field with 376 people in attendance, Sclafani said after the victory.
"There was a lot of buildup going into this game -- it was a big deal," he said. "I'm glad we could pull out a win for the first one."
This is Dartmouth's fifth-straight win after the team initially started the season with an eight-game losing streak. The Big Green earned its last four victories against the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia in a series of doubleheaders last weekend.
There is still much room for improvement, however, especially this early in the season, according to Whalen.
"It's still early in the year for us," he said. "The biggest part of baseball is being able to get out and play. We're trying to improve on everything."
The Big Green will return to the turf this weekend against Ivy League competition with two doubleheaders, facing Princeton on Saturday and Cornell on Sunday, in Hanover.
"Princeton and Cornell are great, highly competitive teams," Whalen said. "There is a friendly but very competitive rivalry between us."
