YORK, Pa. – Joey Norton pitched a complete game and Stephen DeBellis delivered a two-strike, eighth inning grand slam as the Widener University baseball team forced a winner-take-all game in the MAC Commonwealth Championship with a 5-2 victory against the Alvernia Golden Wolves on Saturday afternoon.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Norton went the distance, throwing exactly 100 pitches, scattering nine hits, allowing two runs, walking one and striking out two. His only punchouts of the game were the final two batters of the contest. He recorded 13 ground ball outs.
• DeBellis drove in all five runs for Widener and now has six homers and 31 RBI in his postseason career, spanning 16 games.
• Nick D'Alessandro had two hits, a walk, and two runs scored on the day.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Trailing 1-0 in the fourth inning, the Pride got its offense going as D'Alessandro doubled in front of DeBellis who poked a ball through the right side to plate the tying run.
• Alvernia responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth.
• The game remained 2-1 into the top of the eighth when Brennan Taylor and Matt Samson each walked. Two batters later, D'Alessandro drew a base on balls of his own, loading the bases. On an 0-2 pitch following a called strike and a foul ball, DeBellis unloaded, sending a towering shot over the leftfield wall for a grand slam, pushing Widener in front to stay.
• On the mound, Norton delivered his first career collegiate complete game. His previous career long was 4.2 innings.

 
UP NEXT
The Pride and Golden Wolves play a deciding game in the MAC Commonwealth Championship on Sunday, May 5 at 5:00 p.m. The winner of the game receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.