ELON, NC – North Carolina A&T junior right-hander Gavin Sentell (L, 1-7) had his longest and best outing of the season Saturday evening at Elon University's Latham Park.
However, an eighth-inning RBI double from Elon's Jake Hajdu was enough for the Phoenix to withstand Sentell's performance in a 2-1 Elon win over the Aggies in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) baseball play.
The win gives Elon the series win over A&T in a crucial three-game CAA series between the two Piedmont Triad rivals. The Aggies fell to 14-27 overall and 8-9 in the CAA, marking the first time they have fallen below .500 in league play this season. The Aggies are in a four-way tie for sixth place in the CAA standings. The CAA only allows six teams to advance to the conference tournament, therefore, the battle for those six berths is starting to get interesting.
Elon improved to 18-24 overall and 8-9 in conference action. Elon received a strong pitching performance from RHP Nolan Straniero (W, 4-1). Straniero pitched a complete-game four-hitter, surrendering only one, walking two, and striking out seven in 105 pitches thrown.
Sentell threw 106 pitches, pitched 7 1/3 innings, surrendered three hits, two runs, two walks and striking out four.
His teammates gave him a 1-0 lead in the second as junior Andrew Tinsley singled to center field before senior Enrique Wood delivered a one-out single to right to put Aggies on first and third. Wood later stole second, putting both runners in scoring position for senior Kristian Amaro. Amaro hit a groundball to shortstop, leading to the game's first run. Junior Nick DiCarlo would fly out to left to end the A&T threat.
The pitchers' duel was on from that point. Straniero gave up a third-inning single to freshman Bruce Wyche. He did not give up another hit to A&T until the ninth inning. Elon tied the game 1-1 in the fifth inning when Tank Yaghoubi hit an RBI single up the middle to score Vince Fattore, who originally reached base on a five-pitch walk.
Sentell got Hajdu to ground out to end the fifth, leading to him retiring eight straight batters before Yaghoubi singled through the right side with one out in the Elon eighth. That led to Hajdu's game-winning double, and it led to the end of Sentell's outing. The Aggies replaced him on the mound with senior RHP Diego Barrett.
After Barrett entered the game, the Aggies picked off Hajdu, and Barrett struck out Jackson Alford to end the frame, sending the game into the ninth inning. That's where Tinsley put the go-ahead run at the plate with his one-out double to right center.
But groundouts from freshman Savoi Edwards and Wood ended the game. Tinsley had a 2-for4 day. Yaghoubi led Elon by going 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored. A&T will try to avoid the sweep in the series finale on Sunday. The first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.
