Worcester, MA --- WPI baseball excelled at the plate and on the mound in a Sunday doubleheader at Clark's Granger Field against NEWMAC newcomer Emerson College.
The host Engineers (14-7, 7-2) scored 24 combined runs and didn't allow an earned run as they swept the day, 13-2 and 11-0, with starters Craig Teed (Stratham, NH) and Mike Duclos(Greenfield, MA) picking up the victories.
Making his first college start, the freshman Duclos went six strong innings and fanned six, as he combined with three other pitchers for the Crimson and Gray's first nine-inning shutout of the year.
Tyler Van Nostrand (Davie, FL), Sean Greene (Hingham, MA), and Dan Bettigole (South Windsor, CT) each went an inning in relief.
They combined to scatter six hits, while the offense put up 16 hits in each game.
Greene hit a two-run homer in opener, while DJ Ouellette (Watertown, CT) did the same in the nightcap.
Teed gave up scattered two hits across seven innings in the first game.
The Crimson and Gray now sit tied with Wheaton (18-6-1, 7-2) and MIT (10-6, 7-2) atop the NEWMAC leaderboard, while WPI is three games ahead in the west division.
James Sullivan (Medfield, MA) advanced all the way to third on a fielding error in the first at bat of the game, coming home to make it 1-0 Emerson early on after a Mitch Moormann (Hollywood, FL) ground out to first in the next at bat. Sullivan also scored the second Emerson run with help from an error in the eighth inning.
WPI leveled it at 1-1 in the second as Zach Blanchard (Warwick, RI) doubled to left to open the inning, and then Oullette did the same to drive him in.
Walsh had an RBI triple in the next inning, and then WPI made it 4-1 after four, as Steve Petry(Worcester, MA) led off the fourth with a solo dinger and Anthony Capuano (Stoneham, MA) later singled in Nick Comei (Haverhill, MA). Capuano went 3 for 3 and scored twice in the opener, also adding three RBIs in the nightcap. Comei scored five runs overall and went 3 for 4 in the second game.
The Engineers piled on in the sixth, adding seven runs to make it 11-1. The first seven WPI batters reached, with Greene's two-run shot culminating the scoring.
The hosts took a 5-0 lead in the third inning of the second game after Ouellette's two-run shot, then tacked on another two runs in the fourth to make it 7-0.
Capuano's two-run single up the middle in the seventh inning helped put the game out of reach.
Josh Powers (Brookline, NH) pitched well in the nightcap for Emerson, allowing just two earned runs in eight innings of work. Sullivan and Zach Dean (Vero Beach, FL) each registered multiple hits on the day for the Lyons.
WPI will be back on the diamond on Tuesday at 3:30pm, as the Crimson and Gray NEWMAC co-leader MIT at Assumption College. Emerson (3-17, 1-8) resumes on Tuesday as well, hosting Springfield College at Victory Field.
Release by Carl Setterlund - WPI Athletics Intern - Emerson '14