LEICESTER, Mass.- Becker College held on for a 6-5 win over Southern Vermont College in New England Collegiate Conference baseball action Sunday afternoon at Rochdale Park. The win lifts the Hawks record to 12-11 (9-4 NECC), while the Mountaineers fall to 8-14 (3-6 NECC).
Southern Vermont got on the board when they manufactured a run in the top of the first. Sal Sciara (Massapequa, N.Y.) led off the game with a single to centerfield. After a stolen base and ground ball to the right side of the infield, RJ Pingitore (Amsterdam, N.Y.) grounded out short, allowing Sciara to come home from third base.
Becker responded in the bottom of the first when they loaded the bases. Senior Tom Natoli hit a sharp ground ball that skipped past the short stop allowing Chris Testa (Providence, R.I.) and Mike Smith (Warner, N.H.) to score, giving the Hawks a 2-1 lead.
After Mike Smith earned a one out walk in the bottom of the third, Matt Consigli (Whitinsville, Mass.) roped a triple into the right centerfield gap to put Becker in front 3-1. Tom Natoli followed with a ground ball to short, the throw sailed into the stands, allowing Consigli to cross the plate with the Hawks fourth run. After Natoli advanced to third on a wild pitch, he would scored on a Mike Marcello (West Haven, Conn.) RBI ground out.
The Hawks made the score 6-1 in the bottom of the fourth when freshman Trevor Read (Colorado Springs, Colo.) successfully executed a safety squeeze to score classmate Randall Minogue (North Kingstown, R.I.) from third base.
The Mountaineers chipped away at the deficit in top of the fifth when Richard Rios (Pico Rivera, Calif.) scored from third on a double steal.
Southern Vermont cut the Hawks lead to 6-3 in the top of the seventh when RJ Pingitore singled home Sal Sciara.
The Mountaineers made one last push in the bottom of the ninth when they scored two more runs on RBI singles by Roland Hernandez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) and Quinten Scott (Ashaway, R.I.), but Becker reliever Jason Silbor (Uxbridge, Mass.) got Cameron Simpson (Warwick, R.I.) for fly out to left field to end the game.
Becker starter Tony Cantalupo (De Pere, Wisc.) got the win after allow three runs in eight innings. Jason Silbor got the final three out for his second save of the season. Southern Vermont freshman Joshua Hay (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) took the loss after allowing three earned runs in three innings of work.
The Mountaineers return to the diamond on Tuesday, April 15 when they travel to Nichols College for a 3:30 p.m. tilt with the Bison. The Hawks home stand continues on Wednesday, April 16 when they host WPI at 7:00 p.m.