Blazers Split Sunday NECC Doubleheader with Hawks

Holyoke, MA – In a pair of very tight New England Collegiate Conference games, the Blazers and Hawks each took one game in Sunday's doubleheader at MaKenzie Stadium.

GAME ONE: Elms 5 – Becker 2

The Blazers were out to a 3-0 lead early in game one, starting the scoring with an RBI double in the bottom of the first by senior Nathan Ayala (Springfield, MA).

In the bottom of the second, a two-run single off the bat of Elms junior Tyler Galenski (Wilbraham, MA) improved the Blazers lead to 3-0.

The Hawks responded later in the game with runs in the fourth and fifth innings. An RBI groundout and cut the deficit to 3-1. An inning later, in the top of the fifth, the Hawks benefitted from a Blazers error to trail 3-2.

Elms added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth to comfortably win the first game of the afternoon. Another two-run single from Galenski provided the final runs of the game, as the Blazers went on to the 5-2 win.

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For Elms, Galenski batted 3-for-4, all singles and four RBI. Ayala's first-inning double was the Blazers only extra-base hit, as he finished 1-for-3 with his RBI double.

Winning Pitcher: Kyle Sebastyanski (1-1)

Losing Pitcher: Tevon Johnson (1-3)

Save: Austin Roy (2)

GAME TWO: Becker 2 – Elms 0

A two-run single in the top of the third was all the scoring provided in game two, as the Hawks earned a split of Sunday's conference doubleheader.

The Blazers had their share of opportunities to score, but the Hawks defense and stout pitching shut the door on every occasion. Elms had two runners in scoring position in the bottom of the fourth but flyouts to left field and right field kept the Blazers down 2-0. Again, in the bottom of the seventh, the Blazers would get two runners in scoring position with two outs, but a groundout back to the pitcher finished off the shutout.

For Elms, Galenski batted 2-for-3, both singles. Freshman Justin Miller (Prospect, CT) finished 2-for-2 with a double.

Winning Pitcher: Russell Dunlap (2-2)

Losing Pitcher: Damon Wesley (1-2)

The Blazers are back in action on Monday, 4/19 when they host another doubleheader with Becker College. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30pm.