HARTFORD, Conn. – Junior James Sinclair (Portland, Maine/Deering) pitched 8 1/3 innings of four-hit baseball to lead the top-seeded University of Southern Maine Huskies to a 4-1 victory over the third-seeded Wheaton College Lyons Saturday night in Game Nine of the 2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Hartford Regional Tournament at DiBenedetto Stadium on the campus of Trinity College.
            The win vaults the Huskies, 34-10 overall, into Sunday's championship game against the winner of the game between Wheaton, 18-5 overall, and fourth-seeded Salve Regina University Sunday morning (11:00 a.m.).  Salve Regina, 16-6-1, stayed alive in the six-team, double-elimination tournament by defeating Johnson and Wales University 4-2 in Game Eight on Saturday.  Southern Maine eliminated SUNY Oswego by shutting out the Lakers 4-0 in Game Seven to begin the day.
            Sinclair did not allow a hit until one out in the sixth inning when sophomore Nick Croteau (Cumberland, R.I.) flared a double down the left-field line.  The Lyons nicked Sinclair for a run in the eighth on senior Brody Ashley's (Strafford, N.H./Coe-Brown) single to left field.  Sinclair finished allowing just the one run on four hits and two walks. He struck out a season-high nine.
            Senior Ben Lambert (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) came on to get the final two outs.  Lambert walked the first batter he faced to load the bases, but got out of trouble with a pop out to the second baseman and a ground ball to first to earn his second save.
            Sinclair and Wheaton junior starter Stephen Quigley (Halifax, Mass.) stifled the offenses until the Huskies scored two in the fourth and one in the fifth.
            In the fourth, senior Andrew Hillier (Bangor, Maine) walked and moved to second on an infield error on senior Andrew Olszak's (Danvers, Mass.) ground ball.  Junior Sam Troiano (South Portland, Maine) singled to center to chase home Hillier with the game's first run.  A one-out walk to junior Jason Komulainen (Gorham, Maine) loaded the bases, and junior Brogan Searle-Belanger (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) reached on a fielder's choice that scored Olszak.  Both runs were unearned.
            After Sinclair set the Lyons down in order in the fifth, the Huskies put another run on the board.  Rookie Janek Luksza (South Paris, Maine/Oxford Hills) led off with a walk and advanced to third on a double from classmate Cam Seymour (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) that ended Quigley's night.  Hillier brought Luksza in with a sacrifice fly to right.
            The Lyons got some offensive life in the eighth inning after two were out.  Croteau walked and sophomore Cavan Brady (Sheffield, Mass.) singled to center to set the table for Ashley who delivered with a single to left that scored Croteau.  Sinclair escaped further damage getting his third strikeout of the inning.
            Southern Maine matched the Wheaton run in the home half on Searle-Belanger's RBI single.
            Things got interesting in the ninth as Sinclair plunked junior Zach DeMattio (North Attleboro, Mass.) with a pitch, followed by a single from senior Cody Cavanagh (Holyoke, Mass.) that ended Sinclair's night.  Lambert walked the first batter he faced, junior Andrew Spirito (Cranston, R.I.), to load the sacks, but was able to get the next two batters to end the game.
            Searle-Belanger had a pair of hits and two RBI, and Olszak had two hits and a run scored for the Huskies.
            Quigley was tagged with his first loss against one win, going four-plus innings allowing three runs (one earned) on four hits and three walks.  He struck out six.  Junior reliever Zach Clesas (Johnston, R.I.) pitched two scoreless innings, and senior Paul Prue (Dennis, Mass./Nauset) was nicked for a run in two innings of work.
 
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	Southern Maine 4,  SUNY Oswego 0 (Oswego Eliminated)
Game 8	Salve Regina 4,  Johnson & Wales 2 (Johnson & Wales Eliminated)
Game 9	Southern Maine 4,  Wheaton 1

 
Sunday, May 30

Game 10	Salve Regina vs. Wheaton	11:00 a.m.
Game 11	Southern Maine vs. Winner of Game 10