MANSFIELD, Conn. – The Eastern Connecticut State University baseball team rallied from an early seven-run deficit to bring the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth in a 10-7 non-conference loss to Trinity College Wednesday afternoon at the Eastern Baseball Stadium.
Looking for its eighth win over Trinity (14-2) in the last nine tries, Eastern (10-9) rallied from seven runs down to score three times in the sixth and threaten in the bottom of the ninth by scoring twice and loading the bases without an out before reliever Alex Herbst wriggled out of the jam by getting a double play and infield ground ball for his first save.
Freshman catcher Matt Malcom (East Lyme) drove in the first run of the ninth with a double and he scored on senior rightfielder Ryan Hood's (Arlington, MA) first RBI (single) of the year.
Trinity starter Cameron Crowley (2-0) pitched four straight scoreless innings after the Warriors had taken a 1-0 lead in the first and the Bantams backed him with three in the third, three more in the fifth and two in the sixth to move out to the 8-1 lead.
The top five hitters in the Eastern order combined for ten of the Warriors' 13 hits, four RBI and five runs scored, but the rest of the order managed just 3-for-17. Batting leadoff, senior centerfielder Alexander White (West Hartford) had three hits, as did senior second baseman William Coleman (Northford). Leading off the seventh inning, sophomore rightfielder Luke Broadhurst (Stafford) hit his third home run in the last five games to extend his hitting streak to seven. He has three home runs, four doubles and three triples and is batting .520 in those seven games.
In his third start of the year, junior righty Jared Buckley (Oxford, MA) pitched into the fifth inning and was lifted after Alex Rodriguez slashed a two-run, two-out double to give Trinity a 6-1 lead.
Four Trinity batters each had two hits, with Vincent Capone, Mike Guanci and Rodriguez each driving in two runs. Matt Koperniak, Guanci and Capone all delivered RBI singles when the Bantams took the lead for good with three runs in the third.
Trinity is ranked third in New England.
Eastern hosts Clark University Thursday at 4 p.m. in a non-conference game before hosting the University of Southern Maine in a Little East Conference noon doubleheader Saturday. The Huskies are ranked No. 1 in New England No. 3 nationally.