Northboro, MA --- Visiting Eastern Connecticut State grabbed its 11th-straight victory, topping WPI 7-3 at the New England Baseball Complex on Friday. The Engineers fall to 10-7, 0-1 to open NEWMAC play, while the Warriors improve to 11-5.
Eastern Connecticut's Justin Marks (Beacon Falls, CT) got the victory to move to improve to 2-0 on the season. He threw six innings, allowing three runs on five hits with five strikeouts. Nathan Furino (East Haven, CT) and Finn Doherty (Milton, MA) closed out the game with Furino tossing two scoreless innings, and Doherty, one.
Offensively for ECSU, Alejandro Soriano (Hartford, CT), Teige Kimbler (Albany, NY), and Jason Claiborn (Prospect, CT) all picked up two hits with one RBI. Ray Leonzi (Trumbull, CT) added two hits and two runs scored, while Ryan Parent (Southington, CT) and Emmanuel Zaiter (Miami, FL) drove in runs.
For WPI, Zachary Roethlein (Pomfret Center, CT) finished with three hits, including a double, while Andrew Cash (Marlboro, MA) drove in two runs, including collecting his fifth home run of the season. Jacob Hand (Niskayuna, NY) added two hits with his team-leading sixth dinger of the year. Luke Blandino (Eden, NY) was saddled with the loss (1-1), going 5.2 innings, allowing four earned runs on eight hits with three strikeouts.
The teams traded runs in the first inning with ECSU striking first after a lead-off single from Soriano was sent home on an RBI groundout from Parent. In the bottom of the frame, WPI's Hand launched a solo homer to right field to tie it at 1-1.
The Warriors added runs in the top of the fourth and fifth innings to make it a 3-1 game. In the fourth, ECSU pushed one across on a double from Lucas Malave (Toms River, NJ) and Balmer, while in the fifth, Soriano added his own RBI double to put the visitors up two.
Eastern Connecticut continued to build the advantage with two more in the top of the sixth. An RBI single from Kimbler scored the first run, while Zaiter drove in another on a fielder's choice.
WPI got two back in the bottom of the inning, closing the gap to 5-3. With one out, Hand walked to set up Cash, who belted a two-run shot to left center to cut the deficit to two.
The visitors answered back, tacking on two more in the top of the eighth. Claiborn drove in the first on a single up the middle, while Zaiter scored on a failed pick-off attempt to make it 7-3.
WPI saw a lead-off single from Roethlin stranded in the bottom of the ninth inning, as Doherty got two of the final three batters of the game by strikeout.
Eastern Connecticut State returns to Little East conference play on Saturday, hosting Plymouth State for a doubleheader beginning at noon.