WORCESTER -- The WPI baseball team swept a doubleheader against visiting MIT on Sunday afternoon at Clark. The Worcester Engineers took game one, 6-4, and grabbed the nightcap, 15-6. WPI improves to 15-7 overall, 3-1 in NEWMAC play, while MIT falls to 8-12 overall, 0-6 in the NEWMAC.
The hosts eked out a two-run victory in game one, backed by a strong outing from Owen Radcliffe (Holliston, MA), while in game two, the Engineers' bats did the heavy lifting, pounding out 15 hits, to win big in the nightcap.
Game One
The Engineers rallied from a 3-1 deficit in game one to get the series opener, 6-4. Radcliffe got the win to go to 2-2 overall, throwing eight innings, allowing four runs on nine hits with four strikeouts. Eric DePiero (Beverly, MA) got the save, his second of the season, pitching a scoreless, hitless ninth inning.
Jacob Hand (Niskayuna, NY) and DJ Brooks (Danvers, MA) both tallied two hits and two RBI to lead the Engineers, while Andrew Cash (Marlboro, MA) and Spencer Merrick (Abington, MA) each drove in runs. Jonathan Lattimer (Windsor, CT) finished with a pair of hits in the win.
MIT's Brian Rapanan (Gurnee, Ill.) took the loss (0-3), throwing 5.1 innings, allowing five runs on six hits with seven strikeouts. Jake Sonandres (Torrance, CA) was 3-for-4 with three RBI to pace the Engineers, while Reed Tubbs (Pflugerville, TX) and Teddy Schoenfeld (Boulder, CO) each added two hits.
WPI struck first with a run in the bottom of the first, as Hand was hit by a pitch before Cash belted a double to make it 1-0.
MIT took over the lead with three in the top of the third, capitalizing on four hits. Kennan Gumbs (New York, NY) opened the frame with a single, was sacrificed to second, and stole third, setting up an RBI single from Tubbs to tie the game. A Schoenfeld single followed before Sonandres knocked a base hit to center that plated two and made it 6-4.
WPI regained the advantage with a three-spot of their own in the bottom of the fifth. Lattimer started the rally with a one-out double before an infield single from Keblin put tow on. Brooks followed with a double down the right field line that plated two, while Hand also doubled, launching one to left to score the third run of the frame to make it 4-3.
The Worcester Engineers added solo runs in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to increase the lead to 6-3. In the sixth, a Jack Zawacki (Pittsford, NY) double came around to score on a Merrick single, while in the seventh, it was a Brooks single that came home on a Hand double.
MIT chipped away with one in the top of the eighth inning. Back-to-back singles from Tubbs and Schoenfeld started the frame before a Sonandres single made it 6-4.
Leading by two, WPI's DePiero worked a three-up, three-down ninth inning to seal the win.
Game Two
WPI jumped out to a 5-0 lead and then used an eight-run eighth inning to close out the doubleheader sweep with a 15-6 victory.
Zawacki tallied two hits, both doubles, adding two runs and four RBI to lead the Crimson and Gray in game two. Keblin and Hand both drove in three runs, with Keblin finishing 3-for-4 in the game. Burns, Zachary Roethlein (Pomfret Center, CT), Matt Shea (Andover, MA), and Lattimer all drove in runs in game two.
Luke Blandino (Eden, NY) got the win for WPI, throwing three innings, allowing two runs on three hits with two strikeouts. Noah Pins (Holden, MA) made the start, going four innings, allowing two runs on five hits.
MIT's Chase Rubin (Arlington, VA) suffered the loss, going one inning, allowing five earned runs on five hits. Malachi Soqui (Castaic, CA) led the Cambridge Engineers' offense with two hits, both home runs. Tubbs, Sonandres and Michael Finch (Brentwood, TN) also drove in runs in the loss.
WPI did damage in the first inning with one out, as Roethlin opened up the scoring with an infield single that plated Cash. Zawacki then doubled down the left field line to drive in two more, before a ground out had one on with two out. Lattimer followed with a triple to center field made it 4-0, while Keblin sent the final run home on a single through the right side to give the Worcester Engineers a five-run early lead.
MIT got on the board in the top of the fifth inning, cutting the lead to just one run. Soqui led off the frame with a solo home run and after a walk, a Godfrey single, and a WPI error, the bases were loaded with no outs. Tubbs and Sonandres each drew RBI walks to cut it to 5-3 before a double-play drove in the final run of the inning to make it a one-run game.
WPI got a pair back in the bottom of the fifth. An infield single from Shea and a walk to Lattimer, set up Keblin who singled through the right side to drive in a run. Three batters later, a two-out single from Burns to make it 7-4 for the hosts.
MIT answered back with runs in the top of the sixth and seventh innings to close the gap to one run. In the sixth, it was a solo HR from Coqui, and in the seventh, an RBI double from Finch made it 7-6, still in favor of WPI.
The hosts put the game away in the bottom of the eighth inning, scoring eight runs on four hits. A bases-loaded walk issued to Keblin plated the first run before a three-run triple off the bat of Hand pushed the score to 11-6. A fielding error pushed the 12th run across before a two-RBI double from Zawacki and an RBI groundout from Shea made it a 15-6 game.
Henry Sniezek (Adams, MA) and Damon Chase (Rye, NH) combined to shut the visitors down each striking out two batters in the eighth and ninth innings respectively as the Crimson and Gray completed the sweep.
WPI continues NEWMAC play on Tuesday at Emerson, beginning at 3:30pm, while MIT also plays Tuesday at the same time, hosting Springfield.