Northboro, MA --- The WPI baseball team split a pair of games with visiting Wentworth on Saturday afternoon at the New England Baseball Complex. Both games ended 7-6 with the Leopards rallying to take game one, and the Engineers holding off a late charge to win game two.
With the split, WPI goes to 9-2 overall, while Wentworth moves to 10-3.
Game One
An RBI single in the top of the seventh inning from Wentworth's Favazzo plated the winning run, as the Leopards rallied from a 6-1 deficit to take a 7-6 game in the opener.
Michael Petit (Sandwich, MA) drove in a pair of runs for the visitors, while Prisco had two runs and an RBI. A.T. DiPina (Pawtucket, RI) added a pair of hits, while Alec Peruzzi (Plymouth, MA), Favazzo, and Bennett Leary (Alamo, CA) all drove in runs in the winning effort. Peruzzi got the win in relief, throwing two scoreless innings, allowing two hits, while striking out three.
For WPI, Tommy Burns (Morris Plains, NJ) had two hits and an RBI, while Jack Zawacki (Pittsford, NY), Liam Keblin (Newton, MA), and Spencer Merrick (Abington, MA) all drove in runs. Damon Chase (Rye, NH) was saddled with the loss, throwing 1.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits.
Wentworth got on the board first, as Petit homered to left with two outs in the top of the first. WPI tied the game in the bottom of the frame, as a single from DiMichele came around to score on a double play ball.
The Engineers then made it 6-1, putting up five runs in the bottom of the third. Burns and Keblin notched RBI doubles in the frame, while Merrick and Zawacki each singled in runs. Zawacki also executed a double steal with Zachary Roethlein (Pomfret Center, CT), as Roethlein crossed the plate for another WPI run.
Wentworth began to chip away, with an RBI groundout from Peruzzi in the top of the fourth and an RBI single from Leary in the top of the fifth, cutting the WPI advantage to 6-3.
The Leopards tied the game in the top of the sixth with three runs on three hits. Singles from Peruzzi and Petit started the inning with singles, while Petit drove the first run in on a groundout. With two outs, Roncal reached on an error to make it 6-5 before Prisco plated the tying run with a single.
In the bottom of the sixth, WPI got a Burns single, but a double-play erased the runner.
Wentworth's seventh inning saw a one-out walk from Peruzzi advance on a fielder's choice and a wild pitch, putting a runner on third for Favarro, who knocked in the eventual game-winner.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Leopards worked around a two-out rally that saw a Keblin walk and a Brooks single, before Peruzzi forced a fly-out to seal the victory.
Game Two
A two-out infield single off the bat of WPI's Burns plated Hand from second and provided the winning margin, as WPI salvaged the Saturday split with a 7-6 win in game two.
Burns led the Engineers' offense, going 3-for-4 with three RBI. Joe DiMichele (East Longmeadow, MA) added two RBI, while Hand collected a pair of hits. Roethlein and Merrick also chipped in with RBI. Eric DePiero (Beverly, MA) was the pitcher of record, earning the win with 2.2 innings of work where he allowed no runs, one hit, and struck out two.
Petit drove four runs on two hits for the Leopards, including a double and a home run, while Aaron Lundgren (Portsmouth, NH) added two hits. Jon Campbell (Snohomish, WA) picked up the loss, pitching three innings in relief, allowing two runs on four hits.
Wentworth struck first again, as Lapierre opened the game with a single to right and eventually came home to score on a double-steal. The Engineers countered with a Hand single in the bottom of the frame that scored on a Roethlein sac fly.
WPI took a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the third plating three. Burns doubled down the right field line to drive in the first run of the inning, while two batters later, DiMichele sent two batters home on a double to left.
Wentworth closed the gap with a Petit solo homer in the top of the fourth, but WPI got the lead back to three with a Merrick double in the bottom of the fifth, making it 5-2.
In the sixth, Petit struck again, this time with an RBI double to make it 5-4, but WPI again countered. A two-out single from Burns plated Hand to make it a 6-4 game.
The Leopards finally tied the game with two runs in the top of the seventh. Leary made it a one-run game with a sac fly, while Petit added a sac fly of his own to tie the game at 6-6.
Burns gave the Engineers a 7-6 advantage in the bottom of the eighth and WPI worked around a lead-off single in the top of the ninth to earn the split.
Next Up
WPI is back in action tomorrow, heading to Nichols for a single game beginning at 12pm. Wentworth plays again on Tuesday at Salem State, visiting the Vikings for a 3:30pm match-up.