VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Senior catcher Matt Malcom (East Lyme) drove in four runs with two home runs and sophomore righty Matthew Wootton (Milford) won his first career start as the Eastern Connecticut State University baseball team won its opening game of the 2023 season with a 10-5 victory over Virginia Wesleyan University Friday morning at Perry Field.
Ranked second nationally in the pre-season by D3baseball.com and seventh by Collegiate Baseball after winning its fifth national championship in 2022, Eastern (2-0) completed the sweep of Virginia Wesleyan (1-5) with a 13-hit attack in the nightcap that produced an 8-4 win.
The first-game win was the program's 24th straight over two years and broke the program's overall record for consecutive wins and was the first in the head coaching career of first-year Eastern head coach Mike Odenwaelder, a former assistant at Dartmouth College. Last year's team tied the season record of 23 straight wins during its historic run to the national title.
A pre-season All-America, Malcom hit a three-run home run as the third batter of the first inning in the opener, and a leadoff double by junior shortstop Zach Donahue (South Windsor), two walks and two infield ground balls made it 5-0 in the third. Malcom's leadoff homer in the seventh made it 8-2 in the seventh and first-year junior transfer Tiernan Lynch (Easton) followed three batters later with a double that drove in the first two runs of his career.
Making his 13th career appearance but first start, Wootton (1-0) pitched a four-hitter with seven strikeouts before giving way to brothers Nicholas Furino (East Haven) and Nathan Furino (East Haven), who combined for seven strikeouts over the final five innings. In his debut, Nicholas Furino allowed only one hit with three strikeouts over three innings in middle relief.
In the opener, Eastern reached senior lefty Cam Nolet (0-1) for seven runs in five innings, collecting seven hits and drawing four walks. Last year at Wilson College (Pa.) Nolet was 9-0 and ranked sixth nationally by averaging 15 strikeouts a game.
Junior righty Nolan Lincoln (Londonderry, NH) won his seventh straight decision over two seasons in the second game, taking a 6-1 lead into the fifth inning to record his first win in his first decision of the year. First-year lefty transfer Dan Driscoll (Waterford) and sophomore righty Mike Furgalack (Southington) allowed only three hits and a run over the final 4 1/3 innings to preserve Lincoln's victory.
Eastern supported its pitcher with its double-figure hit attack in the nightcap, scoring six runs in the first three innings off sophomore lefty Connor Mock. Batting ninth, senior second baseman Noah Plantamuro (Bristol) had a two-out, two-run single in the second after Mock had retired the first two batters. With one out in the third, Malcom, senior DH Colby Linnell (Prospect) and junior first baseman Ryan Parent (Southington) had consecutive singles to spark another three-run inning and make it 6-0.
One of the nation's top pitching staffs a year ago in strikeout-to-walk ratio, Eastern combined to strike out 23 and walk only three Friday. On the afternoon, Malcom (who reached six times with four hits and two walks) and junior leftfielder Josh Cofrancesco (Southington) each had four hits, with Linnell, junior rightfielder Jason Claiborn (Prospect) and Parent collecting three each and Lynch, Donahue and first-year Division I transfer centerfielder Ray Leonzi (Trumbull) picking up two each. Behind Malcom's five RBI, Lynch drove in three and Linnell, Claiborn, Parent and Plantamuro two each. Linell and Leonzi each scored three times and Plantamuro stole two of Eastern's five bases.
Malcom's two homers give him 26 in his career – the most by a catcher in program history – and tying him for 11th all-time with former All-America teammate John Mesagno.
The season-opener is the earliest for Eastern since it defeated Whitman College, 4-1, in Walla Walla, WA on this date 11 years ago.
Eastern is now 4-0 all-time against Virginia Wesleyan in a series which began in 1979. The Marlins finished 16-19-1 a year ago.
Eastern and Virginia Wesleyan close out the three-game opening set Sunday with a noon single game.