WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State University will host two Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference baseball tournament games at Bud and Jim Hagan Field this upcoming Thursday, beginning with a first round match-up between third-seeded Mass. Maritime and sixth-seeded Framingham State at 11:00 A.M., with the winner advancing to play second-seeded Westfield State at 3:00 P.M.
Schedule:
GAME 1: #6 Framingham State vs #3 Mass. Maritime – Thursday 11:00 A.M. (Hagan Field)
The Rams and Buccaneers will face-off in a MASCAC first round tournament game. The first round is a single elimination game with the winner advancing to play the Owls in the afternoon at 3:00 P.M. while the loser is eliminated from postseason contention. Mass. Maritime won the regular season series against Framingham, winning two of three games as each team won on the road.
GAME 2: Game one winner vs #2 Westfield State – Thursday 3:00 P.M. (Hagan Field)
The Owls received a first round bye and will host the winner of game one in the second round of the MASCAC tournament, which begins the double elimination portion of the bracket. The Owls lost the regular season series to Mass. Maritime, losing game one at home 11-9, before splitting the doubleheader on the road (W, 3-2/ L, 9-6). The Owls swept Framingham in the regular season series (19-7, 7-2, 11-4).
Tournament Preview:
#2 Westfield State Owls – Westfield State earned the number two seed in the MASCAC tournament with a 24-14 overall record and a 15-6 mark in conference play. The conference seeding came down to the final regular-season series, with the Owls taking two of three games from Bridgewater State while the Buccaneers dropped two of three to Worcester State, giving the Owls sole possession of second place.
The Owls finished the regular season scoring the second-most runs (254) in the conference with the long ball playing a key role in the team's run production as they led the conference in home runs with 32.
First-year Samuel Palmer (Medfield, Mass.) finished the year with the top batting average in the league (.412) while also leading the MASCAC in on-base percentage (.523) and slugging (.647).
Senior Nick Martin (Shrewsbury, Mass.) manned the leadoff spot in all 38 games played for the Owls on the year, compiling a .343/.445/.566 slash line. He led the conference in runs scored (51) and also finished in the top five in the league in home runs (6).
Senior Ethan Day (Meriden, Conn.) ranks third in the MASCAC in RBI, leading the Owls with 34. Sophomore Nolan Florence (Chicopee, Mass.) has supplied the power in the middle of the Westfield lineup, recording seven home runs.
On the pitching side, the Owls have dealt with a plethora of injuries to their staff. In the absence of key arms, sophomore Ryan Donahue (Medfield, Mass.) stepped into a much larger role with the team, pitching the second most innings (53.0) on the year. He posted a 2.55 ERA and struck out the second most batters in the league (59) in ten appearances. The Owls return senior Shane Bogli (Vernon, Conn.), who missed several weeks due to injury, back into the mix where he registered a 2.48 ERA in 32.2 innings pitched.
#3 Mass. Maritime Buccaneers – Mass. Maritime finished the regular season as the third overall seed entering the MASCAC tournament, posting a 22-15 record on the season and a 14-7 MASCAC record.
Pitching has been the driving force in the success of the Buccaneers this season as they have allowed the fewest runs (156) in conference play. Junior Brodey Tinkham (Norton, Mass.) led Mass. Maritime in innings pitched (62.0) and wins (7) while posting the second lowest ERA in the league at 1.16. Closer Brenden Baiardi (Harwinton, Conn.) anchors the back end of the Buccaneers' bullpen, tying the league lead in saves at six.
The Buccaneers possess a balanced offensive attack with junior John Tropea (East Sandwich, Mass.) and senior Aidan Henderson (Hanover, Mass.) leading the team with 22 RBI apiece. As a team, Mass. Maritime is tied for third in the league in runs scored at 213.
#6 Framingham State Rams - Framingham State placed sixth in the conference regular season at 11-26 overall and 6-15 in league play. The Rams won the final regular season series against Fitchburg State to hold the tiebreaker and secure the sixth seed heading into the tournament.
Offensively, the Rams have struggled to produce runs, ranking last in the league in runs scored (182) with an average of 4.92 runs per game. Framingham does boast one of the top hitters in the league in sophomore Ryan Boyle (Arlington, Mass.) who ranks fourth in the MASCAC in average (.375). He also belted the fourth-most home runs in the conference, tallying six on the year and leads the Rams in RBI at 26.
On the pitching side, Framingham is headed by sophomore Scott Nosky (Dedham, Mass.) who owns a 2-6 record with 4.12 ERA across a team-leading 54.2 innings. He struck out 46 and walked 25 in ten regular season starts. Senior Teaghin Andre (Fairhaven, Mass.) has been the Rams top reliever, recording a 3.50 ERA in 14 appearances.
A victory for Westfield State would place the Owls into the winner's bracket portion of the tournament with the opponent to be determined on Friday at 3:00 P.M from Bridgewater State. However, an Owls loss will place them in an elimination game at Bridgewater State with the opponent to be determined at 11:00 A.M. All remaining tournament games beyond Thursday will be played at Alumni Park on the campus of Bridgewater State University.