Baseball Opens Pod Play With Loss to Lasell, 3-1, on Thursday

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The second-seeded University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) baseball team dropped the opening game of the 2026 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Baseball Tournament, 3-1, against seventh-seeded Lasell University on Thursday afternoon at the USJ Baseball Field.

With the result, the Lasers (20-18) move into the winner's bracket of Pod B and will face the winner of the No. 3 seeded Saint Joseph's College of Maine (SJC) and No. 6 seeded Norwich University at 12 p.m. on Saturday. The Blue Jays (25-16) drop to the elimination bracket and will take on the loser of the SJC/Norwich matchup at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• USJ struck first in the bottom of the second inning as junior outfielder Joseph Fritz (Tampa, Fla.) lined an RBI single up the middle, scoring sophomore catcher Jack Kushman (Southington, Conn.) to give the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead.
• The game remained a pitcher's duel into the seventh inning, when Lasell seized momentum with a three-run frame to take a 3-1 lead.
• The Blue Jays were unable to answer over the final innings, as the Lasers held on to secure the 3-1 victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Senior pitcher Brandon Cahill (Meriden, Conn.) delivered another strong outing, tossing seven innings while allowing seven hits, three runs (one earned), and striking out four.
• Fritz led the offense with a hit and the team's lone RBI.
• Kushman added an extra-base hit and scored the Blue Jays' only run.

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