THE BASICS:
- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Fran O'Brien Field)
- Records: MIT (12-16, 7-7 NEWMAC); WPI (15-19, 4-10 NEWMAC)
- Score: MIT 15, WPI 13
- The Lead: Trailing by a 13-3 margin head into the bottom of the fifth inning, the MIT baseball team closed the game with 12 unanswered runs to defeat WPI by a 15-13 final on Tuesday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The first inning featured seven combined runs between the two teams as WPI took a narrow 4-3 lead. Kyle Johns doubled down the left field line to drive in a pair to lead the visitors in the inning, while MIT senior Graham Cartwright (La Jolla, Calif.) doubled to right field to score senior Kyle Sonandres (Torrance, Calif.) in the high-scoring inning.
- WPI's big inning came in the top of the fifth as the team struck for six runs on five hits, including two-RBI hits from both Liam Keblin and Kyle DeRoma. For MIT, the Engineers answered with a four-run, six-hit inning that was fueled by three doubles to get the hosts back into the game at 13-7.
- Senior pitcher Ben Burke (Chelmsford, Mass.) had come on for MIT with the bases loaded and no outs in the top of the fifth before getting out of that jam with three strikeouts. Over the remainder of the game, Burke allowed just one WPI runner to get into scoring position while striking out the side in both the sixth and eighth innings.
- MIT's big inning came in the bottom of the sixth as the team put up seven runs on seven hits while also taking advantage of a pair of WPI errors. The Cambridge Engineers had three more extra-base hits in the inning, led by a two-run homer to right center from junior Teddy Schoenfeld (Boulder, Colo.) as MIT went in front at 14-13. The hosts added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh as Schoenfeld scored on an RBI single to right from Kyle Sonandres with no outs for the 15-13 final.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Schoenfeld led MIT with a 4-for-4 performance with three runs scored and two runs driven in as the Engineers finished the game with eight extra-base hits. Cartwright was 3-for-4 with three runs scored, two doubles and two runs batted in. Overall, six Engineers finished with multiple hits for MIT, who outhit WPI by a 19-12 margin.
- Jacob Hand led the WPI offense with a three-hit outing as he also scored a pair. Johns was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and three RBI, while Jonathan Lattimer finished 2-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI.
- Burke improved to 2-0 on the season as he allowed just three hits and one run in five innings, striking out a career-high 13 and walking no one. Eric DePiero was the losing pitcher for WPI, falling to 3-2 as he allowed six runs on seven hits in just 0.2 innings.
UP NEXT:
- MIT is back in action on Wednesday, April 26th as the Engineers host Amherst College for a non-conference game beginning at 4 p.m.
STAY CONNECTED:
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