HARTFORD, Conn. – Sophomore Dominic Perachi (Washington Depot, Conn.) and senior Andrew Roman (Monson, Mass.) combined to hold the University of Southern Maine to five hits as fourth-seeded Salve Regina University staved off elimination with a 5-4 victory over the top-seeded Huskies in Game Five of the 2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Hartford Regional Tournament Friday afternoon at DiBenedetto Stadium on the campus of Trinity College.
            Salve Regina moves on to Game Eight against Johnson and Wales University on Saturday (2:30 p.m.).  JWU defeated Husson University, 8-5, in an elimination game to stay alive in the six-team, double-elimination regional.  Southern Maine awaits the loser of Friday's final game between SUNY Oswego and Wheaton College in Game Seven tomorrow morning (11:00 a.m.).
            Salve Regina struck for two runs in the third inning after two were out against USM senior starter Gage Feeney (Cutler, Maine/Washington Academy), stringing together four consecutive singles.  Freshman Brandon Grover (Ashland, Mass.) and junior Sean O'Malley (Darien, Conn.) picked up the RBI.
            The Seahawks expanded their lead to 5-0 in the fifth against senior reliever Gavin Arsenault (Dixfield, Maine).  Grover drove in the first run with a single, and the second scored on a wild pitch.  O'Malley drove in Grover with a double down the right field line.
            Perachi stifled the Huskies' offense on one hit through the first six innings before tiring in the seventh as USM plated four runs.  Sophomore Tom Vesosky (Colchester, Vt.), who had the only hit off Perachi in the first six innings, opened the Huskies' seventh with a triple to right center, and scored on rookie Cam Seymour's (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) RBI single to right.  Senior Andrew Hillier (Bangor, Maine) followed with a single through the left side to end Perachi's day.
            With Roman on, an infield error compounded the Seahawks' problems allowing the second run to score.  Junior Sam Troiano (South Portland, Maine) stroked a single off Roman to bring in a third run, and the Huskies cut the deficit to one on senior Dylan Hapworth's (Winslow, Maine) RBI groundout.  Roman would finally get out of the inning, and set the Huskies down in order in the eighth and ninth innings to earn his third save of the season.
            Perachi faced the minimum number of batters through six innings.  After Vesosky's leadoff single in the fourth, the Seahawks turned a double play.  A one-out walk to Troiano in the fifth was erased when he was cut down trying to steal.  Perachi was charged with four runs (three earned) on four hits and one walk while striking out six.  Roman allowed just one hit and struck out one.
            Grover and O'Malley each went 3-for-4 with two RBI at the plate for the Seahawks.
            Vesosky had two of the Huskies' five hits.  Feeney was tagged with the loss after allowing two runs on seven hits over three innings.  He did not walk a batter and struck out one.
 
2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship
Hartford, Connecticut Regional
At Trinity College
 
Thursday, Mary 27

Game 1	#1 Southern Maine 17,  #6 Johnson and Wales  2
Game 2	#2 SUNY Oswego 17,   #5 Husson 5
Game 3	#3 Wheaton 5,  #4 Salve Regina 4

 
Friday, May 28

Game 4	Johnson & Wales 8,  Husson 5 (Husson eliminated)
Game 5	Salve Regina 5,  Southern Maine 4
Game 6	Wheaton 6,  SUNY Oswego 5

 
Saturday, May 29

Game 7	#1 Southern Maine vs. #2 SUNY Oswego	11:00 a.m.
Game 8	#6 Johnson & Wales vs. #4 Salve Regina	2:30 p.m.
Game 9	#3 Wheaton  vs.  Winner of Game 7	6:00 p.m.

 
Sunday, May 30
Schedule to be announced depending on number teams remaining