St. John’s Clinches BIG EAST Tournament Berth with Doubleheader Split at Seton Hall

Saturday, May 11

South Orange, N.J. (Sheppard Stadium)

12 p.m.

St. John's University

31-13, 11-5

Seton Hall (DH)

23-26, 6-10

St. John's

Seton Hall

St. John’s Clinches BIG EAST Tournament Berth with Doubleheader Split at Seton Hall

5/11/2024 7:33:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score – Game 1 (PDF)Box Score – Game 2 (PDF)

Red Storm will make its first postseason appearance since 2019

QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's baseball team (32-13-1, 12-5) clinched its spot in the 2024 BIG EAST Baseball Championships with a doubleheader split at Seton Hall (23-27, 6-11) on Saturday afternoon. After falling in game one, 3-1, in 10 innings, the Red Storm punched its ticket to Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio with a 7-3 victory in game two.

The Johnnies will make its first appearance in the BIG EAST Tournament since 2019, marking the first under the direction of Head Coach Mike Hampton. The fifth-year skipper will make his 17^th appearance in the league tournament since his arrival in Queens in 2001, assisting the Red Storm in 16 consecutive postseason berths (2004-19) under former head coach Ed Blankmeyer.

Seeding for the BIG EAST Tournament is still up for grabs with four games remaining in the conference slate. St. John's currently sits in second place with a 12-5 record.

Sophomore catcher Jimmy Keenan delivered the winning blow for the Red Storm in game two with a bases-clearing, three-run double in the top of the ninth, part of a four-run frame. The White Plains, N.Y., native finished the doubleheader with four RBIs in total.

Game 1

St. John's dropped game one, 3-1, in extra innings to the Pirates.

After a scoreless opening frame, Seton Hall broke through on a wild pitch and took a 1-0 lead through two innings of play.

The Johnnies threatened in the fourth stanza following a Ben Beauchamp leadoff single to break up the no-hitter. After a walk to Keenan and a flyout that allowed Beauchamp to move up another 90 feet to third, Seton Hall got out of trouble and left both runners on base.

The Pirates nearly punched a run across in the bottom of the fourth, putting runners on second and third with no outs. After starter Xavier Kolhosser struck out the next batter he saw, Seton Hall walked to load the bases. Louis Marinaro came on in relief, working the Johnnies out of trouble on his own with a punchout and snagging a grounder up the middle to keep the Pirates at bay.

St. John's tied the game with a one-run sixth inning after capitalizing on a Seton Hall miscue. Beauchamp walked, advanced to second on a failed pickoff attempt and stole third. Keenan took a 3-2 offering up the middle, driving in the Johnnies' right fielder for a 1-1 deadlock.

Marinaro continued to stifle the Pirates' lineup through the seventh inning, allowing just one hit and striking out four batters over his career-high 3.2 frames of work. The lefty worked a 1-2-3 frame in the fifth and seventh frames.

Tim Cunningham did much of the same in his 96^th outing with the Red Storm, tossing scoreless eighth and ninth innings to force extras. The submariner blew strike three past a trio of Pirates in his two frames of action.

Seton Hall walked off in the bottom of the 10^th inning, seeing Aiden Robbens hit a two-run homer to secure the 3-1 win in extras.

Game 2

St. John's utilized a four-run ninth inning to clinch its spot in the BIG EAST Tournament with a 7-3 victory in game two.

Red Storm starter Evan Chaffee kept the Pirates' lineup off balance all afternoon, going a career-high 7.1 innings and striking out three batters. The lefty also tossed a 1-2-3 frame on four occasions in Saturday's win.

The Pirates jumped out to a 1-0 lead on an RBI single from Danny Melnick in the bottom of the first.

St. John's nearly retaliated in the top of the second after putting runners on the corners following a leadoff single by Keenan and a Chad Falcon base knock. The Pirates halted the threat and kept the Johnnies off the scoreboard again.

Despite one unearned crossing in the opening frame, Chaffee limited Pirates with back-to-back 1-2-3 frames in the second and third innings.

The Johnnies knotted the game at one in the fourth stanza. Marty Higgins slapped a 1-0 pitch into the right-field corner, hustling around for a one-out triple. Chad Falcon skyed a sacrifice fly to deep center in the ensuing at-bat, bringing Higgins around to score.

The Red Storm eventually took its first lead of the day in the top of the seventh. After singles from Luke Orbon and Jackson Tucker, left fielder Garrett Scavelli belted a two-run double off the center-field wall to take a 3-1 advantage.

Chaffee continued to dominate over his final 4.1 innings, retiring 13 of the final 16 batters he faced with only one runner advancing past first base. The lefty did not factor in the decision after the Pirates tied the game at three on another Robbens' two-run home run in the eighth inning.

St. John's unloaded four runs in the top of the ninth to seal the game. Orbon singled to open the frame before moving to second on a Tucker walk. Both runners advanced 90 feet on a wild pitch before Blake Mayberry drew a walk of his own to load the bases. Keenan turned on the first pitch he saw and smacked a three-run double to center, putting the Johnnies ahead, 6-3. Higgins nearly did the same thing, slapping his first offering into right-center, swapping bases with Keenan for a 7-3 lead.

Jed Boyle came on in the ninth and sealed the Red Storm's four-run victory with a scoreless inning of work, punching the Johnnies' ticket into the BIG EAST Tournament.

The Johnnies will return to action for its series finale against Seton Hall on Sunday. First pitch from Mike Sheppard, Sr. Stadium at Owen T. Carroll Field is slated for 2 p.m.