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| Middlebury scored three runs in four separate innings and struck out a season-high 17 batters on Wednesday, securing a 12-2 victory over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The programs played for the 61st meeting with the Panthers owning a 34-27 edge in the series that started in 1907. Middlebury has won the last nine matchups dating back to 2019. The Panthers pushed their winning streak to nine straight, matching the third-longest stretch in program history. MIddlebury athletics photo |
Belhaven opened their CCS Tournament stay with a resounding 16–1 win over Huntingdon at the Scotland Yard on Wednesday, showcasing a complete team performance on both sides of the diamond. The Blazers erupted offensively, piling up 15 hits and 14 RBI while capitalizing on every opportunity at the plate. After a scoreless first inning, Belhaven took control with a two-run second inning, sparked by a two-out, two-RBI single from Cole Fletcher. That was just the beginning of an offensive outburst that continued over the next four innings. Belhaven added two more runs in the third, then broke the game wide open with a six-run fourth inning highlighted by RBI hits from Tristan Pearson, Nick Thornton, Austin Canale, and Parker Ryan. Canale was especially lethal at the plate, going 4-for-5 with five RBI. Belhaven ace Kade May (7-1) kept Huntingdon quiet throughout, going the distance with a dominant complete-game performance. May allowed just one run on seven hits while striking out three and walking one over seven innings, needing only 74 pitches to secure the win. Meanwhile, Belhaven's plate discipline and aggressive baserunning added pressure all game. The Blazers drew seven walks, had three hit-by-pitches, and stole two bases. Every spot in the lineup contributed either a run or hit, underscoring the depth of the Blazers' batting order.
They've done it all year and did it again. The Fightin' Scots came from behind to defeat Covenant 8-6 to advance to the quarterfinal round of the CCS Tournament. MC faced a 4-0 hole before their first at-bat. Maryville countered with a three-run inning of their own. Neither team added a run in the second, but Covenant scored one in the third. After that, both teams were silent until the seventh inning. Covenant banked some insurance in the top of the seventh on a hard-hit chopper to third base. 6-3 Covenant. The Scots would explode in the bottom of the eighth for five runs on six hits. Maryville was able to get eight straight batters on base on six singles, a fielder's choice, and a walk. Frank Derner, Ashton Whiteaker, Nick Curry, Brayden Evans, and Hunter Thaxton, would all score in the inning, giving the Scots an 8-6 lead with only one frame left for Covenant. Relief Pitcher Xavier Resto was able to get Maryville the win, striking out one, and getting two batters out on a ground out and a fly out. He did allow a triple in the inning, adding to the dramatics, but proved to not be an issue.
In an impromptu midweek matchup, the Utica Pioneers headed down to Houghton, New York to complete the season series against the Alfred Saxons. Much like the second contest this season between the two squads, the Pioneers fell behind early in the action, with Alfred using a three-run third inning and a four-run fifth inning to take a 7-1 lead midway through the game. It was entering that back half that the Pioneers flipped a switch though, using a sixth inning barrage to plate 11 runs in the frame and grab a 13-7 lead heading to the seventh. The team secured seven hits and used three errors to notch the crooked number during that sixth inning. They proceeded to capitalize on the momentum during the seventh and eighth innings, grabbing two runs in each frame to run-rule the Saxons by a 17-7 final just before the ninth arrived. The Pioneers as a unit finished with 17 total hits and 11 walks, reaching base safely an outrageous 28 times. Six orange and blue batters also recorded multiple base knocks in the contest. Jacob Scalise led the Pioneers in the RBI category, cashing in four thanks in large part to a three-RBI double during the sixth inning. Mike Rockwell wasn't too far behind though, grabbing three RBIs of his own including a two-RBI rocket to left center which sealed the deal for Utica in the eighth inning. Justin Mazovec and Jacob Pian each added two RBIs of their own as well.
No. 3 Endicott powered its way past MIT, 14-3, in Wednesday afternoon's non-conference matchup at Fran O'Brien Field. The Gulls jumped out in front thanks to a first-inning solo shot from Danny MacDougall. After the Engineers snagged the lead with a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the first, the Gulls evened things up in the second with a TJ Liponis sac fly, and then took the lead in the third off of a Joey Frammartino two-run round tripper to right. In the fourth, the Gulls tacked on another three. Included in the three-run frame was MacDougall's second bomb of the game, a two-run shot that carried well over the left-center field fence. They added another three runs on a Robbie Wladkowski two-run single and a Zach Stephenson RBI double in the fifth, pulling ahead comfortably on the road (10-2). Then, in the seventh, Liponis hit the Gulls' fourth homer of the day, a two-run blast to straightaway left field to put the Gulls ahead 12-3. Wladkowski extended on his big day in the top of the eighth, as he joined in on the home run parade with a two-run lighttower blast over the left field wall to make it 14-3. Playing their fifth game in four days, it was an all-hands-on-deck pitching situation for the Blue and Green. Colby Correia, Brandon McSorley, Ben Gill (winning pitcher), Kyan Bagshaw, and Derek Roberts combined to limit the Engineers' offense to just three runs on six hits.
Tufts wrapped up their regular season slate with a big road win at the New England Baseball Complex as a pair of Ben Leonard blasts helped power the Jumbos to a 15-6 win over the Worcester Polytechnic Institute Engineers on Wednesday afternoon. The Jumbos (15-19) looked to the bullpen from the start as the starting rotation got the regular season finale off. The Engineers (14-23) were quick to get on the board but this was just a memory as the Tufts put a jumbo number (9) on the board in the fourth. The nine run inning put the Jumbos ahead 9-3, and the scoreline held behind some stingy pitching by Mark Herlihy. Ben Leonard led off the sixth with a big fly over the wall in right field before Connor Brala made it 11-3 with an RBI groundout. Ronan Hwang held the Engineers scoreless through 1.2 innings of work before Emmet Christian did the same across 1.1 innings. McCullough tacked on a pair of RBI with a single in the top of the eighth, and the top of the ninth saw Leonard homer again for another pair of runs. Justin Wells and Cole Donato combined to close out the ninth with three runs allowed as the Engineers made a desperate attempt at a comeback. An unassisted groundout to third ended the game with the Jumbos ahead 15-6, and they ended their regular season with an emphatic win.
Senior Joe Bova had a massive day at the plate going 3-for-4 with two home runs and a double to drive in four runs and score two to lead Southern Maine to a 15-9 win over the Bates Bobcats in a non-conference game Wednesday afternoon at Leahey Field. Bova has hit a home run in the last two games for the Huskies, hitting the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth against Bates in yesterday's home win (9-8) before launching two today against the Bobcats. Playing 16 games this season, mostly as a reserve, Bova is hitting .273 (6-for-22), and three of his six hits have been for home runs. Sophomore Mike Anquillare (North Haven, Conn.) also had a strong day offensively with a 3-for-5 effort with three runs scored and three RBI, including a two-run home run in the seventh. Juniors Dylan Firmin and Chris Quigley each had two RBI. Firmin was 2-for-5 with to runs scored, while Quigley was 2-for-5 with a run, including a solo home run in the second.
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| Vermont State University Castleton got back in the win column on Wednesday with an 11-5 win over VTSU Lyndon. Castleton athletics photo |
Bowdoin ran away with its regular season finale at home against the University of Maine-Farmington in a 17-0 shutout. Bowdoin heads into the postseason with a 24-9 overall record. Jeremiah Chessie started the game and pitched two innings with one walk and one strikeout. Hank Marriott, Hugh Devine, and Aidan Aybar all pitched .2 innings. Baker Olin and Sam Almy each pitched a complete inning with two strikeouts apiece. Kevin Murray faced three batters in the seventh inning and struck out two before Jacob Warren retired the final UMF batter. Bowdoin put three runs on the board in the first inning and didn't look back. The Polar Bears took a 7-0 lead in the second inning. Farmington kept Bowdoin off the board for two innings before the offense found three more runs in the fifth inning and seven in the sixth.
Keystone powered past Neumann 14-0 Wednesday afternoon in their final regular season home game. Keystone opened the game with a bang in the bottom of the first with back-to-back home runs by Andy Rivas and Nate Ewing. The Giants scored once in the second with an RBI double by Chase Boyle. They would break it open in the third as they poured on seven runs as Boyle brought home two runs with a single, a Carlos Pascual grand slam, and a solo shot by Rivas, his second home run of the game. Dee Rice brought home two in the fifth with a single and advanced to second on the throw. Brandon Girod started and earned his first win as he went four innings with four strikeouts. Ewing, Luke Baker, and Dylan Byler tossed an inning in relief. Ewing struck out two batters while Baker and Byler had one. Keystone (29-9) earned the top seed in the United East Conference Tournament and will host No. 9 seed Wilson College in a best-of-three second round series on Friday.
Alfred State made a clean sweep against the Penn State-Behrend Lions in there double head conference matchup 4-3 and 11-4. Ryan Bailey set the tone on the mound for Alfred pitching all seven innings while only allowing two runs on five hits. Bailey tallied the win while retiring four batters. In the top of the sixth, Pios swung the momentum back their way as they took lead of just one. Pios were able to hold off the Lions for the rest of the sixth and seventh inning, taking the first game 4-3. Christopher Mattoon logged the victory on the mound in the second game throwing for all nine innings. Mattoon retired four hitters and only allowed four runs. Alfred State opened a 8-0 Lead through four innings. The Lions scored two runs in fifth, and the Pioneers answered with three runs in the sixth. The Lions tried to rally in the ninth by scoring one run but couldn't get any closer as the Pios wont it 11-4.
Eastern Connecticut State concluded a two-day, two-game offensive onslaught by scoring 17 runs for the second time in 24 hours, pushing across ten runs in its final two at-bats in a 17-2 non-conference victory over Western New England Wednesday evening at the Eastern Baseball Stadium. Now 9-2 at home with two regular-season home games remaining, Eastern (25-11) collected 18 hits – seven of them for extra bases – in improving to 41-9 all-time against Western New England (20-16). In his sixth start of the season, senior righty Alex Mach (Rockfall) pitched at least five innings for the third time. Mach allowed only one unearned run on six hits over five innings while fanning five without a walk for his third win in three decisions.
Looking to get one step closer to postseason play, Wittenberg registered its fifth sweep of the season against a North Coast Athletic Conference team while getting back to winning ways. This time, the victim was Oberlin on the road at Dill Field on Wednesday. The Tigers posted a 14-6 win in game one in nine innings, then a 14-4 rout in game two in seven innings to push their record to 27-9 on the season and 11-3 in the NCAC. The Yeomen fall to 12-23 and 3-11 NCAC on the season. In game one, eight players drove in runs for Wittenberg and six players tallied a stolen base. First baseman Xander Rodriguez had a big day at the plate going 5-for-6 with a double and three runs batted in. He also scored three runs. Tommy Chilicki, Thatcher Dietz, and Rocco Royer each drove in two runs and scored one as well. Alex Nemunaitis went 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and scored three runs. Getting the win on the mound for the Tigers was Tommy Anthony, now 3-2 on the season. He gave up six runs, five earned, on eight hits while striking out one in five innings of work. In game two, the Tigers got the bats out early scoring five in the first and four in the second to take a 9-0 lead after two were in the books. They put two more on the board in the third and one each in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to post the win. Oberlin scored all four of its runs in the third inning. Wittenberg had 19 hits with one error in the game, while Oberlin tallied 11 hits and one miscue. Charlie Schafer picked up his fifth win of the season going two innings and allowing three hits while striking out two. Wittenberg pitchers allowed four runs, only two were earned and struck out five while walking three in game two.
UW-Eau Claire held off St. Olaf College 9-6 on Wednesday at Mark Almli Field. The Blugolds built a big lead early and held on down the stretch to win their final non-conference game of the season. UW-Eau Claire (8-28) scored four times in the top of the first against the Oles (20-14). The hot start featured RBI singles from Drew Salyers and Carter Vieth. The Blugolds added a solo homer from Will Johnson in the third and a solo shot from Austin Buck in the fourth. They led 8-1 through four and a half innings. St. Olaf scored three times on a pair of RBI doubles in the bottom of the fifth to make it an 8-4 game. The Oles tacked on two more runs in the seventh, slashing the deficit to two. The Blugolds scored an insurance run on a wild pitch in the eighth, and Ty Sagedal earned the save by recording the final out in a scoreless ninth inning. Harrison Esau earned the first win of his college career by pitching four relief innings. He held the Oles to two runs. Buck led the lineup with a 2-for-4 performance. He also stole a base.
As Oswego faced off against the Hobart Statesmen, fireworks flew as the Lakers earned a 9-5 win. Oswego set the tone early with a first-inning solo homer from Tishawn Featherstone, giving the Lakers a 1–0 edge. After a quiet second and third, the Lakers erupted in the fourth, posting a five-run frame thanks to clutch hitting and a pair of Hobart errors. Daniel Winchester, Dylan Rosenberg, and Matt Carner played key roles, with Carner driving in two runs during the outburst. Hobart responded with runs in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings, narrowing the gap to just one run at 6–5. However, Oswego answered back in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs, Rosenberg doubled and came around to score on another error, and Benjamin Silverman followed with an RBI single to give Oswego some breathing room at 8–5. The Lakers added an insurance run in the eighth when Emil Sander, who had a three-hit game, drove in Trey McGowan with a single to make it 9–5. Oswego's bullpen closed the door, with Owen Hoyt pitching two perfect innings to seal the win. Nick Cody earned the win, throwing 4.2 innings of two-hit ball while striking out six and allowing just one unearned run. Oswego racked up 15 hits, led by Winchester (3-for-5), Sander (3-for-5), and Brendan Mair (2-for-4).
With the final non-conference meeting of the season set for today, the Worcester State Lancers (21-11, 11-7) hosted Keene State, winning 10-6, in a last primer before the final conference meeting versus Mass. Maritime and the start of the postseason next week. The Lancers found themselves down 1-0 in the bottom of the first, until senior Tyler Smith hit a home run over the center field fence, which ran in first-year Christopher Mondesir, who made it on base from a single giving the Lancers the lead 2-1 going into the second inning. The next runs would come in the bottom of the fourth with first-year Ben Domineck getting a 2-RBI triple increasing the lead for the Lancers to 4-1 going into the fifth inning. First-year Riggs Catlin would get a 1-RBI single in the bottom of the fifth, and following that, senior Anthony Iamarone would get a 1-RBI double to allow Catlin to run into home plate to increase the Lancers' lead to 6-1 going into the sixth inning. In the seventh inning, sophomore Ryan Jewett would get from third to home from a wild pitch, and shortly after that, Smith would get a 1-RBI single, increasing the lead to 8-2 going into the eighth inning. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Catlin would get a 2-RBI double, increasing the Lancers' lead to 10-3 going into the ninth inning. The Owls would attempt a ninth inning rally, but would only manage to get 3 runs, which would give the Lancers the win 10-6 in this afternoon's matchup.
Hiram had one of its best days of pitching this season on Wednesday afternoon, as Nick Licursi and Braeden Kinnaird highlighted a doubleheader sweep of Thiel at Fishel Field, 4-1 and 3-1. Licursi worked four innings of one-run ball to start Game 1, while Kinnaird logged career-highs in innings pitched (5.2) and strikeouts (7) as part of a scoreless outing to win Game 2. The Terriers also picked up two of their five saves for the season, with Sam Boyle and Cody Horvath logging quality work in the late innings to get their team back on track. In the midst of the pitching clinic, Hal Walker Jr. officially moved into a tie with Mike Dobran (1998) for the most hits in a single season in program history (63). Walker Jr. doubled to lead off Game 1 and laced a single in Game 2, putting him just one hit away from breaking the prestigious record.