New London, CT --- Coast Guard collected 12 hits and scored in seven straight innings to defeat WPI 9-4 and complete a weekend NEWMAC sweep on Sunday afternoon at Nitchman Field. The Bears improve to 16-9 overall and 5-2 in conference play, while the Engineers fall to 11-15 and 0-7 in NEWMAC play.
WPI was led offensively by Jacob Wiberg (Exeter, NH), who went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Jonathan Lattimer (Windsor, CT) added a solo home run and finished with two RBI.
On the mound, Luke Blandino (Reading, MA) was tagged with the loss after allowing seven earned runs on nine hits in 5.2 innings, striking out five. Damon Chase (Rye, NH) and Ethan Smith (Hanson, MA) each worked an inning in relief, allowing one earned run apiece.
Coast Guard's offense was paced by Rick Barkley (Bellevue, WA), who homered and drove in three runs. Carson Cho (Haymarket, VA) tallied three hits, scored twice, and doubled, while Connor Cilento (Point Pleasant, NJ) and Parker Madden (Ruston, LA) each homered. Wyatt Duthu (Madison, AL) and Luke Percifield (Pinellas Park, FL) chipped in RBI hits.
Jackson Dorsey (Newark, DE) earned the win for Coast Guard with 2.1 innings of scoreless relief, allowing two hits and two walks. Ryan Karman (Sayville, NY) closed out the game with two shutout innings, striking out one.
WPI struck first in the opening inning on a Lattimer fielder's choice that scored Tommy Burns (Morris Plains, NJ). But Coast Guard responded immediately and didn't let up, scoring in each of the next seven innings. Madden's two-run homer in the third gave the Bears a 3-1 lead, and RBI singles from Percifield and Barkley helped stretch it to 6-2 by the fifth.
Lattimer homered in the fourth to bring WPI back within one, and Wiberg laced a two-run double in the fifth to cut the deficit to 5-4. However, that run was the last the Engineers plated.
Barkley launched a solo shot to right in the fifth and added an RBI walk in the sixth. Cilento extended the lead to 8-4 with a solo homer in the seventh, and Duthu's single in the eighth drove in the final run.
Up Next, WPI travels to Nichols for a non-conference matchup on Monday at 3:30pm. Coast Guard returns to NEWMAC action Tuesday at Wheaton, also at 3:30pm.