DARTMOUTH, Mass. – An offensive spree in game one, coupled with Adam Maher (sophomore) no-hitter in game two helped lift the UMass Dartmouth baseball team to a doubleheader sweep of Western Connecticut State University on Friday. The Corsairs (11-5, 2-0 LEC) posted a 12-5 win in game one, and notched a 10-0 victory over the Wolves (3-16, 0-2 LEC) in game two.
The Corsairs took off in the third inning of game one, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the frame and extending their lead to 9-0 after three. The inning began with three straight singles for the Corsairs, coming from freshman Brett Baker, sophomore Devyn Vezina, and senior DJ Perron. With the bases loaded, senior Andrew Bryant approached the plate and cleared the bases with a three-RBI double. Bryant advanced to third on a Jared Neikam (junior) single to center.Neikam stole second base before he and Bryant crossed home thanks to an Andrew Possi (junior) two-RBI single to right field. UMD loaded the bases once more in the third with two outs, leading to another two-RBI single, this time off the bat of Vezina, giving the Corsairs a 9-0 lead.
The Wolves would go on to score a few runs, but ultimately the pitching and defense of UMass Dartmouth held on to the large lead. Starting on the mound and earning the win for the Corsairs was senior Ryan Qualey (2-1). Qualey earns his second win of the season while allowing nine hits on 32 batters faced over six innings. Coming in for the final three innings and earning the save was senior Adam Horowitz.
The bats were hot for the Corsairs offensively, Vezina went 3-for-5 with three RBI's and scoring twice. Bryant knocked in four RBI's on two hits. Possi added two hits, two RBI's, and two runs scored. Grad student Chase Stafford had a three-hit game as well, along with an RBI and crossing home as a runner once.
At the plate, WestConn saw multiple hits from three batters; senior Joe Gambino, grad student Jake Montas, and sophomore Spencer Barnett. Shouldering the loss on the mound was senior Orlando Swift (1-3). Swift takes his third loss of the season after pitching 7.2 innings and facing 41 batters.
In game two, the Corsairs showed their strength on the defensive end, as well as offensively. Maher put on a sensational performance on the mound, pitching all seven innings without allowing a single hit. Maher allowed no hits and no runs while striking out 10 of the 23 batters he faced. Maher is now 2-0 for the season after the no-hitter.
Offensively, all ten of the Corsairs runs came from just two innings. A six-run fifth inning coupled with a four-run bottom of the seventh propelled UMD to the mercy-rule victory after seven innings. Bryant went 3-for-3 in game two, scoring one run and knocking in two with his bat. Baker went 2-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Possi also scored twice on two hits and an RBI. Stafford had a game-high three RBI's on a base-clearing double.
WestConn struggled offensively to get on base, and shouldering the loss for the Wolves was senior Connor Gannon (1-3). Gannon went four innings, allowing seven hits and five runs.
UMass Dartmouth is back in action on Wednesday when it faces Mitchell College at home. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 PM.