Daniel Webster Outlasts Baseball To Secure Doubleheader Sweep
Daniel Webster Outlasts Baseball To Secure Doubleheader Sweep
NASHUA, N.H. – Elms College junior shortstop
Brendan
Cordeiro (Berkley, Mass.) was 3 for 5 with a two-run
homer in the third inning of game two, but a walk-off single to
left center field in the 10th inning by Elliot
Kilgore (Milford, N.H.) gave Daniel Webster College a 5-4
come-from-behind victory and sealed the series sweep in Saturday
afternoon's New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) baseball
doubleheader at Harvey Woods Field in Nashua, N.H.
With its two losses, Elms concludes its season 10-22 overall, 5-10 in league play. Daniel Webster, meanwhile improved to 18-14 on the season, 11-4 in NECC action and clinched the regular season NECC title outright and also claimed the top seed in the 2010 NECC Championship tournament.
Game One – Daniel Webster 4, Elms 0
Through the first 5.2 innings of the opener, Elms managed just three hits while the Blazers limited Daniel Webster to two, before the Eagles rallied for four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Nick Michaud (Windsor Locks, Conn.) led off with a double to left field before a one-out RBI single by Chuck Manning (Riverside, R.I.) drove pinch-runner Nate Marshall (Groveton, N.H.) in with the first run of the game. A double by Aaron Richards (West Warwick, R.I.) put two runners into scoring position for Darrik Marstaller (Spofford, N.H.) who laced a two-run single into center field. Marstaller stole second and was then doubled in by Kilgore to give Daniel Webster a 4-0 lead before a strikeout ended the rally.
Both teams were retired in order in the sixth and Elms put a pair of runners on base in the top of the seventh when junior first baseman Albert Betances (Springfield, Mass.) connected for a single and junior catcher Carm Bonavita (Springfield, Mass.) reached base when he was hit by a pitch, but Bonavita was out on a fielder's choice, and a fly out to center ended the scoring opportunity for the Blazers.
Noah Shaw (Lebanon, Conn.) scattered four hits in a seven-inning complete game effort to earn the victory and improve to 3-0, while Elms starter Zach LeBarron (Bennington, Vt.) tossed all six innings for the Blazers, striking out seven batters to move to 3-4 on the season.
Michaud was 2 for 2 in the game, while Marstaller drove in a pair in the winning effort.
Game Two – Daniel Webster 5, Elms 4 (10 innings)
With the score knotted at 3-3 after seven innings, the sides battled through two more scoreless innings heading into the 10th frame. Daniel Webster had a chance to potentially place the winning run in scoring position in the bottom of the eighth when Kilgore drew a one-out walk but was caught trying to steal second. Bruce Brown (Lowell, Mass.) then struck out but reached on a passed ball to give the Eagles another opportunity, this time with two outs. For the second time, Bonavita and sophomore second baseman Nicolino Iavicoli (Hamden, Mass.) were able to catch the base runner stealing.
After both sides were retired in order in the ninth, Bonavita was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a base hit by senior right fielder Robert Reyome (Westfield, Mass.) and then moved to third on a bunt single by Cordeiro to load the bases with none out. An RBI groundout by freshman center fielder Stephen Fisher (West Boylston, Mass.) drove in Bonavita with the go-ahead run and moved the runners up 90 feet into scoring position. The Eagles used a strikeout and a groundout to end the threat and keep the score 4-3.
In the bottom of the 10th, Josh Chasse (Haverhill, Mass.) ripped a two-out single before Marstaller tripled him in with a deep poke to left center. Kilgore followed suit with a blast to left center to score the game-winning run.
Rich Lizotte (West Warwick, R.I.) pitched the final 4.1 innings in relief of Eagles' starter Michaud and earned the victory to move to 4-1 on the season. He tossed four strikeouts and allowed just one run in the winning effort.
Senior reliever Dan Ingraham (Granby, Mass.) replaced junior starter Matt Wood (Feeding Hills, Mass.) with two outs in the sixth and pitched the final four innings and suffered the loss (0-5). Ingraham fanned three batters, while Wood tossed a game-high six strikeouts on the hill for Elms.
Elms took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning when Reyome smacked a two-out single and then came full circle when Cordeiro launched a two-run bomb over the fence in left field.
The Blazers extended the lead to 3-0 in the top of the sixth when Iavicoli reached on a one-out walk, raced to second on a passed ball and then moved to third on a fly out before sophomore left fielder Donald Morse (Alfred, Maine) drove him in with a base hit.
The Eagles tied the game at 3-3 in the home half of the sixth on the strength of an RBI single off the bat of Chris McKenzie (Burlington, Mass.), a score on an infield miscue, and when Brown stole home.
