Springfield, MA --- With a doubleheader split at Springfield on Saturday afternoon, the WPI baseball team earned a spot in NEWMAC postseason action for the first time since the 2019 season. 

WPI (19-13-1, 7-6 NEWMAC) earned a 13-2 run rule victory over Springfield (15-18, 2-11) to start the afternoon off before the Pride were able to bounce back in game two and hang on for a 9-8 victory over the Engineers.  

Jacob Hand (Niskayuna, NY) finished game one with a 3-for-4 outing with three RBIs and three runs scored while Andrew Cash (Marlboro, MA) went 1-for-3 on the day with two RBIs and four runs scored. In game two, Cash added a 3-for-4 outing, driving in another run and scoring another trio of runs while Matt Shea (Andover, MA) also added a 3-for-4 outing with three RBIs and a run scored.  

Owen Radcliffe (Holliston, MA) picked up the victory in game one pitching 6.0 innings and allowing six hits and just two earned runs while striking out three. Luke Blandino (Eden, NY) got the game two start, pitching the first 2.2 innings of action and allowing six hits and six runs before Dominic Monico (Litchfield, NH) came into the game in relief pitching 3.1 innings, letting up three runs on six hits and striking out four in the loss.  

GAME ONE

The Engineers took home the run rule victory in game one from Springfield putting together 13 runs on just nine hits over the course of eight innings.  

WPI got the action going early putting up a pair of runs in the first. Hand started things off with a single to center, Cash walked and Tommy Burns (Morris Plans, NJ) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Zachary Roethlein (Pomfret Center, CT) sent a sacrifice fly to centerfield to score Hand while a ground out from Jonathan Lattimer (Windsor, CT) drove in another run for the 2-0 lead.  

Springfield evened the score in the third inning before WPI answered back in the top of the fourth with a five run frame. Jack Zawacki (Pittsford, NY) reached on a fielder's choice and moved over to third on a single through the right side from Liam Keblin (Newton, MA) to put runners on the corners. DJ Brooks (Danvers, MA) followed that with a single through the left side to bring home Zawacki and Hand answered with a triple to right field to clear the bases and make it a 5-2 lead. One batter later Cash sent one out of the park as the Engineers amassed a 7-2 lead after three-and-a-half innings.  

Another pair of runs was added to the total in the sixth inning as Hand picked up another RBI with a single through the right side while a Burns triple to center drove home Cash for a 9-2 lead.  

In the eighth, the Engineers added another four runs to the total as the team loaded the bases with no outs for Burns. Burns was hit by a pitch to drive in a run, Roethlein was also hit by a pitch to bring in another, Lattimer walked to send home another Engineer and a ground out to short brought home the fourth run of the inning, putting WPI up by 11, 13-2, enough to end the game early.  

GAME TWO 

However, in the second game of the day, Springfield put up a five-run third, a three-run sixth and was able to hold off WPI for the one-run win.  

WPI, once again, put up a pair of runs in the top of the first thanks to a Roethlein double and Shea single. After Springfield got one back in the bottom half of the frame, the Engineers went on to add a pair of runs to the board in both the second and third innings. A Cash single and a Burns triple, his second of the day and third of the season, brought in the runs in the second inning. In the third, Shea added a double and Keblin beat out an infield single to make it a 6-1 game.  

But Springfield evened the score in the bottom half of the third with a five run inning and then took a three-run lead in the sixth to gain a 9-6 lead. 

WPI would not be deterred and bounced back with a couple of runs in the seventh. Cash walked and moved all the way up to third on a pair of wild pitches, setting up a Roethlein single to make it a two-run game. Roethlein advanced a base on another wild pitch and a Shea single up the middle brought him home to bring the Engineers within one. WPI was able to get runners on second and third looking to even the score but were unable to get anyone else across as Springfield held on for the win.  

NEXT UP

WPI will return to the field against Clark on Tuesday, April 30 at 7pm to round out the month while Springfield faces Coast Guard at home on Tuesday at 3:30pm.