NORTON, MA- The Wheaton College baseball team entered Saturday needing a sweep over Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) combined with an Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) loss to Clark University and got both, as the Lyons claimed their 12th New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) regular season title in the league's 13-year history and the top seed in next week's double-elimination tournament with 17-0 and 9-4 victories at Sidell Stadium.  Wheaton shares the regular season crown with Babson College.

Winners in 18 of their last 21 games, the Lyons, who are receiving votes in this week's D3baseball.com national poll and ranked sixth in the region by the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA), improved to 22-7 overall and 13-5 in the NEWMAC.  Wheaton will host fourth seed United States Coast Guard Academy in Wednesday's opening round at 3:30 p.m.  Falling to 11-21 and 7-11, WPI didn't qualify for the tourney.

Wheaton junior Dan Haugh (Andover, MA/Saint John's Prep) was outstanding at the plate, going a combined 6-for-6 with five RBI and four runs, as the third baseman now has 49 RBI on the season to go alongside 16 doubles.  His 16 doubles are tied for fifth in program history and are one shy of the 17 he hit last season, while his career-best 49 RBI ties senior teammate Sean Munley (Ewing, NJ/The Hun School of Princeton) for sixth.

The Lyons pounded out 19 hits during its 17-run showing in the opener, overshadowing a stellar pitching performance from sophomore Frank Holbrook (Middleton, RI/Portsmouth Abbey), who improved to a perfect 5-0 after firing a two-hit shutout with four strikeouts and two walks.  Graduate student Nolan Murphy (Shrewsbury, MA/Saint John's) took the loss after yielding nine earned runs in 1.1 innings.

Haugh went 3-for-3 with three runs and two RBI, sophomore Dan Gusovsky (Andover, MA/Andover) was 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI, and freshman Mike Bisceglia (New Boston, NH/Goffstown) smacked a grand slam.  Seniors Hadi Raad (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY/Hastings) and Tad Skelley (Wolfeboro, NH/Holderness School) and sophomore Eric Jensen (Gorham, NH/Gorham) plated two runs apiece, while junior Hal Landers (Salem, NH/Salem) had two hits.

After putting two runs on the board in the first, Wheaton exploded with a nine-run second frame.  Jensen, Raad and Skelley each recorded two-run hits.  Gusovsky's two-run double in the third made the score 13-0 before Bisceglia topped off the scoring with a fifth-inning grand slam over the deepest part of the fence in center.

Game two saw the Lyons jump out to a 7-0 lead after four before the Engineers plated four in the fifth to close within three.  However, Wheaton sophomore Justin Dickinson (Stratford, CT/Bunnell) came on in relief and closed the door, tossing 2.2 shutout frames with four strikeouts to earn the win.  Offensively, Haugh had three hits and three RBI, Landers notched three hits while scoring twice, and Bisceglia and Jensen each drove in a pair.

Skelley began Wheaton's two-out rally in the second with a double.  Raad laid down a perfect bunt to advance Skelley to third, and Landers brought in the first run with a single to left.  Jensen and Haugh then each hit two-RBI singles for a 5-0 lead.  Bisceglia's fourth-inning double brought two home to make the score 7-0.  After WPI came within three, the Lyons tacked on single runs in each the fifth and sixth frames to complete the scoring.

Sophomore Alex Julian (Sterling, MA/Wachusett Regional) was saddled with the loss, giving up seven earned runs on 10 hits with five walks in 4.2 innings.  Sophomore Daniel Thomas (Manchester, NH/Memorial) was the lone multiple hitter, going 2-for-3, while senior Bryan Watkins (Belmont, MA/Belmont) plated two runs.

Wheaton hosts Keene State College tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. in its final tune-up before Wednesday's NEWMAC Tournament begins.