Baseball Spilts Twinbill with RIC Behind Polanco's Walk-Off Hit

BRIDGEWATER, Mass.  --  The Bridgewater State University baseball team rallied for four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning of game two as the Bears earned a split of a doubleheader with the visiting Anchormen of Rhode Island College on Sunday afternoon at Alumni Park.

RIC won the opener, 4-0, while Bridgewater earned the split with a dramatic 4-3 victory in game two.

The Bears record now stands at 8-9 on the season, while the Anchormen are 9-7 overall.

Jose Polanco (Lawrence, Mass.) rapped a walk-off, two-run single with one out in the bottom of the seventh as the Bears erased a 3-0 deficit in the nightcap.  

Ian Williams (Taunton, Mass.) started the rally with a lead-off single and moved to second one out later on a Keane Costa (Fairhaven, Mass.)  infield single.  A balk advanced the runners to second and third, and Trevor Lawson (Easton, Mass.) lined a single to center to plate Williams with the Bears' first run of the game. 

With the tying run now on first, Tory Buck (Shelburne Falls, Mass.) followed with a hard ground ball to short that was mishandled for an error.  Costa scored on the play with Lawson moving to second.  RIC reliever Mike DeWald (Hope Valley, R.I.) was called on to end the threat but was greeted by a John Garabedian (Mansfield, Mass.) base hit to left which loaded the bases.  Polanco, who had entered the game defensively in the top of the seventh, then lined a 3-2 pitch into center field to plate Lawson with the tying run and Buck with the game-winner.

The late-inning heroics made a winner out of BSU right-hander Jim Balboni (Townsend, Mass.).  Balboni (2-2) went the distance giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits and six walks while striking out five.

Dylan Cummiskey (Warwick, R.I.) suffered the loss for the Anchormen despite keeping the Bears off the scoreboard for the first six innings.  Cummiskey (1-1) went 6 1/3 innings and was charged with all four runs (three earned). He gave up six hits, did not walk anybody and struck out eight.

RIC scored an unearned run in the fourth on a Dean Grasso (Cranston, R.I.) RBI double.  The Anchormen made it a 3-0 game in the sixth on a Grasso sacrifice fly and a Cody Ortega (Kissimmee, Fla.) run-scoring single.

Lawson was the only player to finish with multiple hits in game two as he went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI.

In game one, C.J. Tsoumakas (Hope, R.I.) tossed a complete game shutout as he scattered seven hits, walked just one batter and struck out 11.  Tsoumakas improved his win-loss record to 4-3 on the season. 

RIC plated three unearned runs in the first taking advantage of a key Bridgewater State error. Alex Verrecchia (Cranston, R.I.) and Joan Mustafa (Providence, R.I.) notched run scoring singles in the frame.  Mustafa went 2-for-3 at the plate in the opener.

Corey Batista (Fall River, Mass.) pitched well in the loss for the Bears.  After giving up the three unearned runs in the first, Batista settled down and retired 15 of the next 16 batters he faced until running into trouble in the seventh.  The Anchormen would score their fourth run of the game in the seventh on a bases loaded walk by Kyle Allaire (Uxbridge, Mass.).

Batista (1-3) went the distance giving up four runs (one earned) on five hits with three walks and four strikeouts.

David Pierce (East Bridgewater, Mass.) paced the BSU offense in game one as he was 3-for-3 at the plate.  Kevin Sugermeyer (Hampden, Mass.) had two hits in three at bats as he was making his first appearance in the starting lineup.