Burns Stays Hot, Blandino Goes Seven Strong but WPI Falls in Series Finale at MIT

Cambridge, MA --- WPI baseball pulled within a run late, but host MIT held on for a 4-2 victory in a NEWMAC matchup Saturday morning at Fran O'Brien Field. The Engineers of WPI drop to 11-11 on the season, while MIT improves to 9-10 overall. 

Tommy Burns (Morris Plains, NJ) led the WPI offense, going 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and a stolen base. Andrew Cash (Marlboro, MA) drove in a run in the eighth, while Jonathan Lattimer (Windsor, CT) and James DiGiovanni (Kennebunk, ME) both added hits. Luke Blandino (Franklin Lakes, NJ) took the loss despite a solid outing, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits while striking out six over seven innings. Brian Riley (Portland, ME) tossed a scoreless eighth in relief. 

MIT was paced by Reed Tubbs (Pflugerville, TX) who picked up two hits and an RBI, while Zev Moore (Jerusalem, Israel) and Malachi Soqui (Castaic, CA) also drove in runs. Cole Foster (Austin, TX) earned the win with seven strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out six. Phillip Hood (Grapevine, TX) picked up his third save with two innings of relief. 

MIT jumped ahead 2-0 in the first inning, as Moore drove in Spivey with a groundout and CJ McCarthy (Pawling, NY) came home on a wild pitch. WPI cut the deficit to 2-1 in the top of the fifth when Chuck Cappello (Southboro, MA) was hit by a pitch and later scored on a single up the middle by Burns. 

MIT added an unearned run in the sixth on Soqui's sacrifice fly to center, scoring Moore. WPI made it a one-run game again in the eighth when Burns led off with a single and later came around on a base hit by Cash. 

In the bottom of the eighth, MIT extended its lead to 4-2 when Spivey walked and eventually scored on a bases-loaded walk to Tubbs. Hood retired the side in order in the ninth to seal the win for the home team. 

WPI is back in action on Tuesday, hosting Emerson at the New England Baseball Complex at 3:30pm, while MIT heads to Springfield, also at 3:30pm on Tuesday.