BROCKTON, Mass. – Pitching was the story of the night as baseball and Keene State College each walked away with a victory in another close Little East Conference doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Campanelli Stadium. Junior lefty Kyle Szatrowski (Agawam, Mass.) led the Beacons to a 6-3 game-one victory, while in the nightcap senior righty Shawn Egan carried the Owls to a 5-1 decision.
With Saturday's split the Beacons continue to go back-and-forth with that .500 mark as they now stand at 13-14 overall and 4-5 in the Little East Conference. The Owls are now 7-15 on the season and 2-7 in the Little East following the twinbill.
Szatrowski coupled with home runs from Jamill Moquete (Boston, Mass.) and Jose Pena (Boston, Mass.) helped the Beacons to the three-run victory. Moquete hit his fourth homer of the year, a solo shot, in the bottom of the first to make it 1-0. In the sixth, Pena crushed his first home run of the year over the right field wall to make it 3-0.
During that time Szatrowski was perfect through the first four innings. An error in the fifth ended the lefty's bid at perfection, but the Agawam native carried a no-hitter into the seventh.
In the nightcap, Szatrowski would record the lone Beacons hit as Egan held UMass hitless until the bottom of the eighth. The pitcher turned first baseman ripped a line shot up the middle as he tried to spark some late inning heroics. Unfortunately that hit coupled with an unearned run for the Beacons would be the only action UMass Boston would produce as the Owls took game two.
GAME ONE – UMass Boston 6, Keene State College 3
Szatrowski's day consisted of eight strong innings in which he allowed two runs on two hits. The only pitcher to record a no-hitter in program history, he also fanned four and walked two to improve to 2-1 on the year. Moquete's and Pena's big bats helped keep the momentum in favor of the Beacons.
The Owls ended Szatrowski's no-no in the seventh on a leadoff single. They would then make it a one-run ball game on a two-run shot by Andrew Gummow. However Szatrowski was able to settle down and got out of the inning with the Beacons lead still intact.
The Beacons pushed their lead to four in the bottom half of the next inning scoring three runs on a bases loaded walk, an RBI groundout, and on an error by the Owls.
In to close out the ninth was senior righty Daniel Heefner (Tracy, Calif.). The California native had to overcome a pair of infield errors but did manage to end the game with the bases loaded while only surrendering an unearned run.
GAME TWO – UMass Boston 1, Keene State College 5
The nightcap belonged to Egan as the righty surrendered just the one Beacons hit to earn his first win of the 2014 season. He would strike out four and walk one in eight complete innings of work. Saturday's loss went to Lucas Ilges (Gloucester, Mass.) who went 6 1/3. The senior allowed four runs, three earned, on eight hits and struck out two.
The Owls would score one run in each of the first three innings to give their pitcher some breathing room. Egan would mirror Szatrowski's showing in game one as he was perfect through the first 3 2/3 before surrendering his only walk of the day to Moquete.
From there he shut down the Beacons bats, and got out of some late jams thanks in part to his defense despite their four errors on the day. The lone Beacon run came on an infield error in the bottom of the eighth which scored Charlie LaPaglia (Marshfield, Mass.).
Vinnie Mangiagli closed out the ninth retiring the side in order to give the Owls their second conference win of the season.
With Saturday's split the Beacons currently sit tied for fourth in the conference standings with Rhode Island College. UMass Boston will face RIC in the final doubleheader of the season (May 2), but still have to play a doubleheader with Plymouth State University (April 26) and a single game with the University of Southern Maine (April 22).
The Beacons return to action on Monday when they travel to Milton to play a single non-conference game with Curry College at 3 p.m.