Robbie O’Connor delivered a strong start and Carmelo Musacchia hit a two-run home run as the Northeastern Huskies defeated Missouri State 5-1 in an NCAA Lawrence Regional elimination game on May 30 at Hoglund Ballpark in Lawrence, Kansas.
O’Connor improved to 10-2 after pitching seven innings of one-run baseball, scattering six hits, striking out three batters, and issuing no walks. He induced 11 ground-ball outs among his 91 pitches. The Huskies collected ten hits overall, including five doubles and a home run. Andrew Rogovic pitched a scoreless eighth inning with two strikeouts, while Andrew Wertz closed the ninth despite allowing a single.
Northeastern scored first in the opening inning when Tyler Harmony walked and Harrison Feinberg singled before Matt Brinker doubled to bring Harmony home. In the sixth inning, Aschettino led off with a double and Charlie Criscola followed with an RBI double. Musacchia then hit his fifth home run of the season—a two-run shot—giving Northeastern a 4-0 lead.
Missouri State scored its only run in the seventh on back-to-back doubles but could not mount further offense against O’Connor. Musacchia added a triple in the eighth for his second extra-base hit of the day. The Huskies secured another insurance run in the ninth after Harmony reached on an error and Feinberg drove him in with his third hit of the game.
Feinberg finished 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI; Musacchia went 2-for-3 with a homer, triple, two RBIs, and a sacrifice bunt; Criscola had two hits including an RBI double; Aschettino was also 2-for-4 with a double. The win marks Northeastern’s second consecutive NCAA Tournament victory over two years and is their eighth all-time tournament win—their first as a lower seed since seeding began in 1988.
Northeastern will next play against either No. 13 Kansas or No. 14 Arkansas—whoever loses Saturday evening’s matchup—in another elimination game scheduled for Sunday at noon Central Time at Hoglund Ballpark.
