Baseball Falls in Conference Twinbill to Becker

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

RINDGE, N.H. – The Elms College baseball team fell in a twinbill to Becker College in their New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) opener at Pappas Field on the campus of Franklin Pierce University Sunday afternoon. The Blazers were defeated, 4-1, in the opener, and then lost, 5-4, in the nightcap.

In game one, the Blazers broke a scoreless in the top of the second as sophomore Jordan Zima (Berlin, Conn.) knocked a leadoff single, then advanced to second and third on passed balls before scoring on an RBI groundout from senior Kevin Dwire (Ellington, Conn.) to stake Elms to a 1-0 lead.

After being held to two hits in three innings from Elms junior pitcher Andrew Sadowski (Northampton, Mass.), the Hawks grabbed control in the fourth, tying the game at 1-1 on a double steal that plated sophomore shortstop TJ Sepkowski (Oceanport, N.J.), followed by an RBI double from freshman designated hitter Kevin Perez (Jersey City, N.J.), to give Becker a 2-1 advantage. Perez came around on a balk, and freshman first baseman Samuel Stratton (Paxton, Mass.) on a throwing error to extend the Hawks lead to 4-1 after four innings.

Becker junior starter Nick Lemay (3-0; Oxford, Mass.) held the Blazers to one hit over the final three innings, to secure the 4-1 victory for the Hawks. Sadowski (1-2) punched out a game-high 10 batters in a six-inning effort.

During the nightcap, Becker struck first as sophomore third baseman Niko Bedell (Manorville, N.Y.) delivered a two-out RBI single to right field in the bottom of the first. The Blazers rallied in the top of the third behind three straight singles from junior right fielder RJ Lyrenmann (Glendale, Ariz.), senior center fielder Brady Forrest (Hampden, Mass.), and junior shortstop Nolan Medeiros (Tauton, Mass.) to load the bases. Lyrenmann reached home on a fielding error by Bedell, followed by bases loaded RBI walks to freshman left fielder Michael Bombard (Chicopee, Mass.) and sophomore catcher Stephen Harrison (Southbury, Conn.), to give Elms a 3-1 lead.

The Hawks trimmed their deficit to a run in the bottom of the third when freshman center fielder Francis Baldino (East Brookfield, Mass.) scored on a throw to first during a dropped strike three. The Blazers regained a two-run advantage, 4-2, in the sixth as freshman designated hitter Andy Vasquez (Queens, N.Y.) scored on an error by Bedell. Trailing 4-3 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, the Hawks walked off with the victory as Baldino and freshman catcher Michael Valle (Yonkers, N.Y.) scored on a throwing error from Blazers senior third baseman Geoff Frost (Ludlow, Mass.)

Elms senior pitcher Sean Sinnott (Granby, Conn.) took a no decision, allowing four runs, two earned, with a game-high 10 strikeouts. Junior Brian Langdon (0-1; Beacon Falls, Conn.) suffered the loss in relief. For the Hawks, starter sophomore Tyler Wagar (Uxbridge, Mass.) surrendered four unearned run on six hits with eight strikeouts, while senior Brian Dowling (Naugatuck, Conn.) earned the win in relief.

The Blazers move to 5-7 on the season, and 0-2 in NECC play, while Becker improves to 9-4 overall, and 5-0 in NECC action. Elms will look to return to the win column with a non-conference game against Westfield State at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Massachusetts Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. The Hawks travel to Lasell Thursday night for a 7:00 p.m. contest.

ELMS BASEBALL