New England College forced a winner-take-all Game 3, but the Pilgrims’ dreams of reaching the Division III College World Series fell short on Saturday against No. 23 UMass Boston. After losing the first game of the Super Regional on Friday, the NEC baseball team had to win the first game on Saturday to stay alive. The Pilgrims did just that, riding a third-inning grand slam from Evan Delaney to a 6-4 win. Manuel Alejandro pitched 3 innings of one-hit relief to earn the win.
Delaney also homered in Game 3, which immediately followed Game 2 at Boston’s Monan Park, but it wasn’t enough as the Beacons (35-12) scored three runs in the second inning and held the lead all the way to the end of their 6-2 win. UMass Boston will head to the D-III World Series in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, while NEC finishes its historic season with a 29-18 mark and the first conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.