Ticket Punched: Knights use explosive fourth inning to punch 4th straight World Series Appearance

Patchaug, NY (May 17, 2025) – Trailing 7-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning, the Northern Essex Community College baseball team, ranked #9 in the last national ranking used an 11-run onslaught in the fourth inning to go on an eventually take down the #6 ranked Sharks of Suffolk County by a 14-11 final score on Saturday afternoon and punch their ticket to a fourth consecutive NJCAA World Series, the programs 11^th all-time appearance. The win was the 32^nd of the season.

The NJCAA World Series will get underway on Saturday May 24^th at Falcon Park in Auburn, NY. Tournament seeding will be announced on Tuesday at 3:00pm on the NJCAA Network.

In the fourth inning the Knights plated 11 runs, 10 of which came before Suffolk could record the innings first out. The bottom of the Knights order loaded the bases with a pair of singles and a walk, before Jake Yngber (Miami, FL) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to plate the first run. Back at the top of the order Jaren Megan (Fairhaven) ripped a double right field that plated a pair. One of Friday's heroes Jacob Carter (Malden) brought the Knights within one on a single up themidle that scored Yngber.

The Knights would take a lead they wouldn't relinquish when Manny Castro (Manchester, NH) singled to left field that plated a pair. A double from Thomas Fratto (Reading) made the score 10-7 and another double two batters later from Luke Martinho (Lynnfield) would result in the eventual game winning hit as the Knights went up 12-7 with no outs in the inning. Yngber would single up the middle to score Martino that would result in the final run of the inning 11 run frame.

NECC would originally jump out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning on RBI hits from Carter and Fratto. The Knights 14^th and final run of the game would come in the bottom of the eighth at Fratton recorded his fourth RBI of the game on a single to left field.

NECC outhit Suffolk 18-12 for the game, with Carter, Castro, Fratto and Michael Fabiano (Reading) each recording three hits in the game

Larsen Burch (Painting Post, NY) came out of the bullpen to close out the Sharks for a second straight day and in the process picked up both wins on the mound in the series as he tossed 1.2 innings of no hit relief, striking out three and walking one. In total the Knights used five pitchers on the mound with Enger Paulino (Dudley) logging the longest stretch as he came on in the fifth inning and pitched 3.1 innings allowing two runs on three hits striking out five.