By Mark Cashman The Heights

April 17, 2008

Chestnut Hill, MA (UWIRE) -- Fenway Park appeared to be the perfect venue for Boston College's baseball team to rebound from the weekend sweep by FSU and claim its ninth Beanpot championship.

Essentially playing a home game, the Eagles looked to regain the form that brought them seven straight victories leading up to last Friday.

The University of Massachusetts baseball team took the field with the burden of avenging the last four Beanpot meetings with BC, which all ended in losses. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the only bird seen soaring over Lansdowne Street was the infamous "Fenway Park Hawk," which made its appearance in the bottom of the fifth.

Tuesday's championship match-up was highlighted by UMass starter Mike DiCato. The Winthrop, Mass., native and Malden Catholic alumnus threw eight innings of no-hit baseball in front of the local crowd.

BC's youthful starter was unable to replicate even one inning of DiCato's dominant performance. In fact, freshman Kevin Moran's walk of UMass first baseman Andy Tuetken at the start of the second was all that coach Mik Aoki could take. He called upon senior right hander Ted Ratliff to stop the bleeding. Ratliff obliged and held the Minutemen scoreless until his exit in the seventh. Regrettably, the damage had been done as UMass chalked up three runs in the first.

The three-run lead was all the confidence DiCato needed to stifle the Eagle hitters. When asked if it had been the best game he had ever pitched, he admitted, "Have to say it is, it's the only game I've pitched for a championship and we came out with the win."

The hard-throwing righty seamlessly carried over his 6 2/3 innings of scoreless work in the first-round game against Harvard. All afternoon, he effortlessly painted the outer part of the plate with his deceptively quick fastball. After displaying his command, he kept hitters off balance by mixing in his late-breaking curve. Even when a pitch was left over the heart of the plate, most hitters swung late and simply fouled it away. DiCato displayed a level of pitching that BC has been hard-pressed to find from its starters all season.

The Eagles' bats were silent until the ninth inning. UMass added a fourth run in the top of the ninth and looked to accomplish the complete-game shutout. For the first time, DiCato began to show signs of fatigue. He lost some velocity and began to leave his pitches up in the zone. After walking Barry Butera and Michael Belfiore, the no-hit bid was lost with Tony Sanchez's bloop single. UMass manager Mike Stone stubbornly left DiCato on the mound, and it almost cost him the game. BC took advantage of the blunder and tagged DiCato for three runs in the ninth. After registering only one out, a pitching change was finally made, and the frustrated DiCato trudged off the field. Mitch Eilenberg entered and swiftly dashed BC's hope of a tremendous comeback.

The Eagles' inability to win the 2008 Beanpot, which also narrowly eluded them last year, cannot be viewed as a complete failure.

Despite being held hitless for the majority of the game, there were several bright points that the Eagles can take from this defeat. The bullpen was given the arduous task of closing the flood gates, which were thrown open in the first inning. Ratliff and Nick Asselin were up to the task. The two combined for six strikeouts and allowed only one run in eight innings of work.

BC's offensive awakening in the ninth included Mickey Wiswall's RBI single, which extended his hit streak to eight games. Left fielder Sam Shaughnessy was responsible for the best hit ball of the afternoon. He scorched a DiCato fastball over 360 feet to deep right field. UMass outfielder Mike Donato got a great jump on the ball and made a spectacular over-the-head catch on the fringe of the warning track right in front of the bullpen.

Shaughnessy and DiCato have some history going back to their high school careers. After seeing the Eagles left fielder homer three times against his team in the high school state tournament, DiCato was well aware of his power. After the game he said, "Whenever the ball comes off his bat, it's usually pretty deep."

The Eagles defense was solid and only allowed one error. Catcher Tony Sanchez flashed his arm strength on several occasions throughout the game. After his throw arrived late on a successful steal in the first inning, his snap throw to first served as a sort of warning shot. UMass failed to listen, and he rebounded by throwing out the next two Minutemen attempting to steal second.

The most encouraging aspect of the game was BC's ninth-inning comeback attempt that came up just one run short.

That "never say die" attitude could give the Eagles a mental edge in close games. The heart and desire they showed will hopefully serve to build confidence as their season progresses.

BC's second consecutive Beanpot championship loss did hurt, with a final score of 4-3. The disastrous first inning seemed to set the tone of the game. UMass was energized by the first three runs and DiCato's prowess on the mound. Perhaps, the Minutemen wanted it more.

The way they all huddled outside of their dugout in between innings revealed the comeraderie that the team shared. Yet again, Fenway was unkind to BC. Its green walls were unfamiliar with the "ping" of aluminum bats echoing throughout their confines. The 96-year-old ballpark seemed to welcome DiCato's attempt to silence that abrasive sound.

(C) 2008 The Heights via UWIRE