A terrific performance by captain Joe Sclafani '12 powered the Big Green (13-6, 2-2 Ivy) to victory. The shortstop went 4-5 at the plate and bashed two home runs, including a grand slam in the top of the ninth inning to cement the win. He drove in six RBIs.
"[Sclafani] just played terrific today," head coach Bob Whalen said. "He's been very consistent the whole year. It's easy to take him for granted but I can assure you, I never do."
Sclafani's .417 batting average ranks second on the team, and his 21 RBIs are tied for the team lead.
On a day when playing conditions ensured that neither team would have an easy time in the field, Whalen also praised Sclafani's defensive performance.
"It was a tough infield on a cold day, but he made his chances look effortless," Whalen said.
Wednesday's game marked the fifth time this season that the Big Green has scored more than 15 runs in a game, and Sclafani was quick to share credit with the rest of the team. Nine players drove in at least one run in the win.
"It wasn't just me out there today," Scalfani said. "Dave Turnbull ['12] and Ennis Coble ['13] both had a couple hits too. It was a total team effort."
Turnbull and Coble combined for five hits against Quinnipiac (13-11, 8-4 NEC), and both scored two runs in the game.
The offensive explosion started early against the Bobcats, as a one-out double by Jason Brooks '11 plated two runs to put the Big Green on top.
Dartmouth extended its lead to 7-0 in the third inning, as five different players drove in runs for the Big Green. This time Quinnipiac fired back, hitting Dartmouth starter Louis Concato '14 for five runs in the inning.
The Big Green defense did not help matters, as Coble recorded an error at second base to allow Bobcats freshman catcher Christopher Caldari to reach. Four batters later, with senior third baseman Joe Poletsky at the plate, Quinnipiac effectively executed a double steal, as senior shortstop Mickey Amanti came home on the play to cut the deficit to 7-4.
After Concato walked Poletsky, fellow rookie Mike Dodakian '14 came on in relief and immediately surrendered a RBI single to senior centerfielder Ben Farina. Dodakian then retired the next two batters to escape the inning.
Whalen said he entered the game intending to use several pitchers from his bullpen, but Concato's troublesome third coupled with a long delay due to the Big Green's five runs in the top half of the inning limited the starter to just 2.1 innings.
"I didn't have a magic number for a pitch count for any of [our pitchers], but I did want Concato to have the longest stretch," Whalen said. "We scored a lot of runs in the third inning and he was in the dugout a long time. They got back into the game quickly, so we had to make a change."
The Big Green bullpen offered much-need relief to many players and helped to invigorate those on the field. Five pitchers combined to pitch 6.2 innings, striking out five and allowing just one earned run.
Dartmouth committed three errors during the game, however, resulting in three unearned runs, although the cold conditions certainly may have played a part in any on-field mistakes.
"During long innings when you don't move a lot, it's tough to move around when you have to make a play all of a sudden," Sclafani said.
Sclafani's two-run shot in the fifth padded the Dartmouth lead to 9-5. Although Quinnipiac was able to close the gap to 10-8 after eight innings, Sclafani's grand slam capped a six-run ninth for the Big Green.
"He hit his home runs at points in the game where they had gotten back into it," Whalen said. "It's really a blow to the other team. It's not just putting up numbers, it's at what point in the game you get those hits, and that's the kind of player he is."
The Big Green opens the home portion of its League schedule on Saturday with a doubleheader against Cornell University in Hanover. A twin-bill with Princeton University is set for Sunday.
