Danbury, Conn.-Junior shortstop Kyle Allaire (Uxbridge, MA) went 7-for-9 with four runs scored and three RBI, while classmate first baseman Dan Hopkins (Cranston, RI) went 4-for-8 with five runs scored, two homers and three RBI, as the Rhode Island College baseball team split a Little East doubleheader at Western Connecticut on Saturday afternoon.

Both teams kept their Little East Conference Tournament hopes alive following Saturday's split at Westside Field. The Colonials edged out the Anchormen, 4-3 in 10 innings in the opener. RIC captured the nightcap, 16-6 in eight innings.

The Colonials, 16-16 overall and 5-7 in the LEC, scored two runs in their first extra frame of the season. Anthony Ruffo (Norwich, CT) reached on an error to open the innings then came around to score on Chris Alberto's (Trumbull, CT) triple to deep right-center field off starter and loser Gary Levesque (East Providence, RI). It was the righty's last pitch after striking out 13 and allowing just six hits over nine innings of work.

After Mike Yates (Guilford, CT) fouled out to the right side off of sophomore reliever David Hoey (Lincoln, RI), David Simone (Danbury, CT) blooped the game-winning hit over senior second baseman Mike Giustino (Wappingers Falls, NY) and Alberto touched the dish just ahead of the tag by senior catcher Justin Corso (Cranston, RI). Levesque was saddled with the loss and is now 3-5 on the season.

Rhode Island came back to tie the game, 2-2 on a run-scoring single up the middle by Allaire in the ninth inning.

Armstrong came out for the 10th and immediately yielded a long go-ahead home run to Hopkins, but as usually happens, he worked out of another jam and handed the Colonials only a one-run deficit

Alberto led the WestConn hitting attack by going 2-for-5 with a triple and double. Yades was the only other Colonials with multiple hits. He also went 2-for-5 and had two RBI in the opener. Allaire and Hopkins each went 2-for-4 for the Anchormen in the loss.

In the nightcap, starter Michael Bacarro (Berlin, CT) was chased after one inning, leaving with back stiffness. He allowed four runs on two hits, but struggled to find the zone, walking four. He falls to 1-4 on the season.

Fielding errors and untimely walks hampered Bacarro and the first man out of the pen Zack Philippas (Seymour, CT). He allowed four hits and seven runs, only three of them were earned, in the second frame.

Tim Guiliano (Stamford, CT) calmed the waters and lasted 5.2 innings and kept the Anchormen at bay. He allowed seven hits and four runs while striking out three and walking one.

RIC, now 15-17 overall and 4-8 in the league, pounded out 16 hits and went through its order in each of the first two innings. Allaire, the lead-off hitter, went 5-for-5 with two RBI and four runs scored. He led off each of the first three times the Anchormen came to bat.

Levesque went 3-for-4 with four RBI and scored a pair of runs. Hopkins stayed sizzling hot, going 2-for-4 with another home run and scored four runs.

Freshman lefty C.J. Tsoumakas (Hope, RI) earned the victory and is now 5-2 on the season. He went seven innings, yielding nine hits and five runs while striking out three and walking two.

 With two games remaining in the LEC slate, there is a log jam in the middle of the pack. Only six teams advance to the LEC Tournament. Currently, Keene State and UMass Dartmouth sit at 7-5, the Colonials and Southern Maine are 5-7 and RIC is 4-8. Plymouth State, which are playing a late pair at UMass Boston on Saturday night, are still within striking distance at 3-7. A sweep of the Beacons, 6-4, will really make it interesting for the final week of action.

 In upcoming action, Rhode Island College will host MIT on Wednesday, May 4.