Baseball Sweeps MASCAC Twinbill

FITCHBURG, Mass. -- The Fitchburg State baseball team suffered a MASCAC doubleheader sweep to Bridgewater State University this afternoon, falling 5-3 in game one before taking a 21-2 defeat in game two.

In the opener, Bridgewater State junior David Pierce (E. Bridgewater, Mass.) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI as the Bears collected a 5-3 victory.

Bridgewater State opened the game with three runs in the top of the first inning, using RBI hits from Pierce, Ian Williams (Taunton, Mass.) and Trevor Lawson (Easton, Mass.), but Fitchburg State rallied back, posting runs in the third and fourth frames to knot the score at 3-3. The Falcons notched a single run in the third with an RBI ground from David Mason (Leominster, Mass.), while Patrick McMahon (S. Windsor, Mass.) and Jeff Boice (Glastonbury, Mass.) belted back-to-back RBI hits in the fourth.

The Bears bounced right back in the top of the fifth frame, reclaiming a two-run lead on an RBI double by Pierce and a run-scoring single off the bat of Williams. Bridgewater starter Jim Balboni (Townsend, Mass.) then closed the door, retiring the final six Falcons to seal the victory for the Bears.

Balboni tossed a complete game for Bridgewater State, scattering eight hits and three runs while striking out 11 and walking only two. Fitchburg State starter Tynan Flegg (Calgary, AB) suffered the loss for the Falcons (2-3), yielding five runs and nine hits with one K.

Senior Frank Yavorosky (Westminster, Mass.), junior Cody Bamforth (Vernon, Conn.) and Boice all registered multiple hits for the Falcons, including three combined doubles, while Pierce and Williams combined for a 4-for-7 performance for the Bears, adding three runs scored and four RBI on the afternoon.

In the second game of the day, Bridgewater State exploded for six runs in the top of the first inning and tacked on seven runs in the seventh to cruise to a 21-2 victory.

Bridgewater State pounded out an 18 hit attack in the nightcap to improve to 5-1 in the MASCAC, using a pair of three hit efforts from Lawson and Keane Costa (Fairhaven, Mass.). Lawson finished 3-for-4 in the contest with a double, two runs scored and four RBI, while Costa added a 3-for-5 day, including two doubles, two runs scored and four RBI. Pierce and Williams were also solid for the Bears, adding two hits apiece in game two.

Yavorosky was the lone bright spot for Fitchburg State, capping off the contest with a two-run homerun in the bottom of the seventh inning, while Mason chipped in with a double and one run scored.

Bridgewater State starter Corey Bautista (Fall River, Mass.) was solid in his complete game effort, holding a no-hitter through 3.2 IP and keeping the Falcons scoreless for 6+ innings. Bautista finished the contest with just five hits and two runs allowed, while adding seven K's in his fourth victory of the year. Senior Perry Russo (East Hartford, Conn.) suffered the loss for the Falcons, allowing six runs (three earned) and four hits over 0.2 IP.

Fitchburg State (7-19, 1-5 MASCAC) returns to action on Monday when it visits Mass-Maritime at 12 p.m. Bridgewater State (18-12, 5-1 MASCAC) will host MCLA on Monday at 1 p.m.