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UConn and Xavier's Historic Baseball Seasons Wrap Up

NEW YORK – Connecticut and Xavier each saw their historic baseball season come to an end in their respective regions, with UConn coming up short against regional host and second-ranked Florida, while Xavier reached its regional final.
 
The Huskies capped the year 44-17 with a BIG EAST regular season crown, while Xavier matched a program record for wins in a season at 39-25 along with the program’s fourth BIG EAST Championship win.
 
Entering the tournament as the No. 2 seed in the Gainesville Region, No. 10 UConn topped Florida A&M, 9-6, in an elimination game to secure the 700th career win for UConn head coach Jim Penders.
 
On Saturday against Florida, the Huskies fell short as the 2023 campaign came to a close. Despite the loss, the Huskies have now won at least a game in the NCAAs in nine-straight tournament appearances and have won 18 games in the NCAA Tournament since 2010.
 
Milestones on the season included BIG EAST Player of the Year Dominic Freeberger collecting his team-leading 30th multi-hit game and Ben Huber collecting his 17th home run, the most for a Husky since Joe DeRoche Duffin hit the mark in 2016.
 
In addition, David Smith scored 70 runs on the year. He is the second Husky in program history to score 70 runs in a season (George Springer, 84 runs in 2010 and 75 runs in 2011).
 
The Musketeers, fresh off a BIG EAST Tournament title, advanced to the Regional Final of the Nashville Region, including a 2-1 win over regional host and fourth-ranked Vanderbilt.
 
After coming up short in the opening round against No. 2 seed Oregon, 5-4, No. 3 seed Xavier bounced back with a 7-0 shutout win over Eastern Illinois. Ethan Bosacker pitched a complete game shutout in his 16th start of the season, capping the year with an 8-4 mark. The complete game shutout marked the second of the season by a Musketeer pitcher, as Brant Alazaus recorded a complete game shutout on May 5 at Creighton.
 
In the second elimination game, the Musketeers outlasted Vanderbilt through a three-hour lightning delay to complete the 2-1 victory with a 1-2-3 top of the ninth, as Justin Loer earned his seventh save of the season. The win marked the 39th of the season, matching a program record previously set in 2009.
 
In the regional final, the Musketeers dropped an 11-2 outing against Oregon to cap the year 39-25.