Box Score RICHMOND, Va. – The University of Dayton baseball team took down Saint Joseph's in an elimination game on Thursday night at the Atlantic 10 Championship 11-5. The Flyers will now take on the loser of Friday's VCU/Rhode Island game, with Dayton's contest scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on Friday.
 
The Flyers improve to 23-26 on the season with the win, a game in which UD managed 15 hits. Senior Riley Tirotta hit his second home run in the A-10 Championship and his 16^th home run of the season, putting him in sole possession of third place in a season in program history. The senior went 2-for-5 with two runs scored in the game. Junior Marcos Pujols hit his 12^th home run of the year, putting him tied for 10^th on that same list.
 
Senior Mariano Ricciardi led the way with three hits, extending his on-base streak to 35 consecutive games and senior Mitchell Garrity went 1-for-3 and was hit by his 20^th pitch of the season, putting him tied for fourth in a season in program history.
 
ON THE MOUND
Graduate student Ben Olson started the contest for the Flyers, pitching the first four innings allowing just two earned runs and striking out five Saint Joseph's hitters. He was relieved to start the fifth inning by sophomore Anthony Hattrup, who would go the next one-third of an inning allowing just one unearned run.
 
Junior Bryce Hellgeth entered for Hattrup and would go the next 2.2 innings, striking out two and giving up just one run on two hits. Freshman Austin Brush entered to begin the eighth inning and finished the contest for Dayton striking out four without allowing a hit.
SCORING PLAYS
Top 4: (6-0 Flyers)
Tirotta reached on a one-out error by the shortstop and proceeded to steal second. Another error on the shortstop from graduate student Chris Cabrera put the first run on the board for Dayton. Graduate student Alex Brickman would single through the left side and graduate student Eddie Pursinger walked to load the bases. A two-out base hit by Garrity plated two runs and was followed by a two-run double by Ricciardi to make it 5-0 Flyers. Junior Benjamin Blackwell would finish the scoring in the inning with a single to left field, scoring Ricciardi and extending the lead to six.
 
Bottom 4: (6-2 Flyers)
A leadoff home run put Saint Joseph's on the board in the fourth. A single, wild pitch, and second single up the middle brought home the team's second run of the inning and made it 6-2 Flyers.
 
Top 5: (7-2 Flyers)
Tirotta hit his 16^th home run of the season on the first pitch of the inning to push Dayton's lead back to five.
 
Bottom 5: (7-4 Flyers)
Saint Joseph's led off the inning with a walk. After a fielder's choice and a single another walk loaded the bases. The Hawks scored the first run using an error by Tirotta and the second on a groundout to Hellgeth, cutting the lead back to three runs.
 
Top 6: (10-4 Flyers)
Ricciardi and Blackwell used back-to-back one-out singles to put two on and Pujols hit his 12^th home run of the season, bringing home all three runs and pushing the lead to 10-4 in favor of UD.
 
Bottom 7: (10-5 Flyers)
A leadoff home run by Saint Joseph's cut the lead to five.
 
Top 9: (11-5 Flyers)
Brickman hit a one-out single and freshman Anthony Steinhardt entered the game as a pinch runner. Pursinger would bring him in to score from first on a double down the left field line giving the game its final score of 11-5.
 
UP NEXT
The Flyers will take on the loser of Friday's first game between VCU and Rhode Island. First pitch for Dayton's game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.