No. 1 Rhode Island College 3, No. 3 Southern Maine 2
The top-seeded Anchormen scored three unanswered runs to overcome and early 2-0 deficit and remain alive in the 2023 LEC Baseball Championship Tournament, eliminating third-seeded Southern Maine by a final count of 3-2.
RIC got on the board in the bottom of the fifth when Cam Santerre drove in Izaiah Rivera with a bases-loaded single to left, and the Anchormen drew even in the seventh as David Iannuccili scored from third as Lucas McElroy reached on a bases-loaded fielder’s choice. Santerre advanced to third on that play before heading home on Cal Parrillo’s single to the gap in left with the game-winning run.
Colin Gauthier was brilliant in his 5.2 innings of relief work for RIC, improving to 3-2 after scattering five hits while recording six strikeouts. Connor Davey lasted just 3.1 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on seven hits while recoding five Ks.
Southern Maine opened the scoring in the top of the third on Jason Komulainen’s RBI-single that plated Tom Vesosky, who later drove in Jonathan Wilson with his RBI-double down the left field line in the fourth. That was all the offense the Huskies could muster, as they stranded 11 runners on base in the contest. Owen Sullivan (1-3) took the loss on the hill after giving up both runs in the seventh.
No. 4 UMass Boston 13, No. 6 Castleton 1 (7 Innings)
Josh Eastman managed to hold the Spartans to just one run as he scattered nine hits while striking out eight over seven innings of work, and the Beacons’ offense took care of the rest to keep UMass Boston’s season alive with a mercy-rule victory in Game 8 of the 2023 LEC Baseball Championship Tournament. Eastman improved to 3-0 with the win.
Justin Goveia got the scoring started for the Beacons with a solo homer to right in the bottom of the first, a feat matched by Craig Corliss the following inning, which was the first of three runs in that frame. Drew Metzdorf blasted a solo homer to left to start the scoring in a four-run sixth that brought the 10-run rule into play.
Corliss was 3-for-3 with three runs scored and a pair of RBI, while Metzdorf finished the day 3-for-4 with three runs scored and an RBI. Both finished a triple short of hitting for the cycle. Aidan Blake and Nick Palma were both 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored
Castleton’s lone run came after loading the bases in the fourth. Hunter Perkins scored from third on a ground out from Ryan Lawrence. The Spartans had scoring chances all game long, but would strand 12 runners on the afternoon.
No. 2 Eastern Connecticut 8, No. 1 Rhode Island College 5
The defending LEC champion Warriors (33-10) won an 8-5 slugfest to eliminate the 2023 LEC regular season champion Anchormen (30-13), and advance to the championship round of the 2023 LEC Baseball Championship Tournament for the third consecutive season. Eastern Connecticut will take on fourth-seeded UMass Boston Saturday at noon at RIC’s Pontarelli Field, needing just one more victory to retain the LEC tournament crown.
The Warriors jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first after the first three batters reached base. Zach Donahue opened the scoring by heading home from third on Ryan Parent’s ground out to first before Jason Claiborn scored on Josh Cofrancesco’s sacrifice fly to right.
It was 3-0 Eastern when the hosts got on the board in the top of the third. Daniel Trzepacz plated Cameron Santerre and Sean Helfrich with a single to right. He was eventually stranded at second when Cal Parrillo struck out to end the threat.
The Warriors stretched their lead to 7-2 with a four-run fifth. Claiborn scored from second on Parent’s infield single, who followed Matt Malcom home two batters later on Alejandro Soriano’s triple to the gap in right. He was then driven in by Ray Leonzi’s single to center to cap the scoring in the frame. Leonzi was 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI on the day.
RIC got three of those runs back in the top of the sixth. Joey Coro drove Lucas McElroy and Parrillo with a one-out, bases-loaded double to right, and Cole Podedworny crossed the plate from third on Izaiah Rivera’s sac-fly that cut the Anchormen’s deficit to 7-5.
It was 8-5 Eastern heading to the top of the ninth, where RIC loaded the bases with just one out in the inning. Nolan Lincoln worked out of the jam by getting Trzepacz to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the game and secure his third save of the year.
Dylan Scudder improved to 6-1 after allowing three runs on six hits while fanning six in his five innings of work for the Warriors. Andre Jose held RIC to just one hit while recording three strikeouts in his 3.1 innings of relief work before Lincoln got the final two outs of the contest.
Connor Davey took the loss for the Anchormen after giving up three runs on five hits and two walks over two-plus innings. Brenden Aldridge gave up four runs on four hits and two free passes over the next 2.2 innings before Colin Gauther calmed things down over the final 3.1 innings of the game, giving RIC a chance to rally for the win.