DUDLEY, Mass. – Sophomore Nick Roy (Middletown, Conn.) and senior Benjamin Harrow (North Reading, Mass.) made up the four hits for the Bison as the Nichols College baseball team fell to Elms College, 5-1, in Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament Wednesday afternoon at the Nichols Baseball Field.
Roy finished the game 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored while Harrow went 2-for-3 and walked once. Sophomore Nick Osma (Babylon, N.Y.) drove in the only run of the game for the Bison on a fielder's choice in the fifth.
The Blazers were paced by junior outfielder Aedin Wadja (Lebanon, Conn.) who reached base in all five trips to the plate – 4-for-4 and hit by a pitch once – and scored a run. Seven different student-athletes collected hits for Elms including freshman Alex Hoss (Stafford Springs, Conn.) and juniors Stephen Harrison (Southbury, Conn.), Tim Gelzinis (North Dighton, Mass.), and Brian Hungerford (New Preston, Conn.) who each had a pair of hits.
Elms received a stellar pitching performance from senior Tom Weldon (Springfield, Mass.) – the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Pitcher of the Year. Weldon improves to 11-1 on the year after pitching his sixth complete game of the year and only allowing one run on four hits while striking out four and walking two.
Junior Adam Rigney (Niantic, Conn.) took the loss after tossing five innings and allowing three runs on eight hits while walking a pair and striking out four. Senior Joseph Nicolace (Cranston, R.I.) pitched 3.1 innings of relief in his final game in a Bison uniform. He allowed no runs on five hits while striking out five.
The Blazers scored the first run of the game in the fourth inning off of a single to left field from senior Nolan Medeiros (Taunton, Mass.) that brought home sophomore Dan Brunetti (Enfield, Conn.). They added two more in the fifth inning to take a 3-0 lead.
The Bison scored their first and only run in the fifth inning off of the Osma fielder's choice before the Blazers added two more in the ninth to seal the deal.
Next Games
Nichols (24-18) – season over
Elms (32-12) – ECAC Semifinal on Friday