BETHEL, CT — Masuk High’s baseball team had a thrilling extra-inning win in the South-West Conference Tournament quarterfinals on Sunday.
The No. 3 seed Panthers got a game-tying home run in the bottom of the seventh inning then had a walk off homer in the last of the ninth for a thrilling 6-5 win over No. 6 New Milford. The game took place at a neutral site, on Bethel High School’s turf field, due to wet field conditions at Masuk.
In the top of the seventh New Milford’s Danny Reid hit a solo home run to give the Green Wave a 5-4 lead. But the Panthers struck back.
In the bottom of the seventh, with one out, Jackson Zylick tied things with a solo home run, his third hit of the day. After a scoreless eighth and top of the ninth, Chris Cascella led off the bottom of the ninth with a homer to end the game.
Justin Fanning pitched five and two thirds innings allowing two earned runs on six hits and struck out nine. Jacob Mondo earned the win in relief, pitching three and a third innings allowing only one run on three hits and struck out five.
After a New Milford homer in the top of the first Masuk answered when Zylick scored on an error. New Milford took a 3-1 lead into the fifth inning.
Masuk tied the score in the bottom of the fifth when Jerson Perez scored on Steven Curtin RBI double. Chris Welch then hit an RBI single to tie the score at 3.
New Milford took a 4-3 lead in the top of the sixth on an RBI double by leadoff hitter Gianni Barberio. Masuk tied the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the sixth on a Connor Fulchino solo home run.
Up next Masuk will play at No. 2 Bethel in the semifinals on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
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