Baseball Posts 13-1 Rain-Shortened Win Over Emerson

By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Jay Wladkowski (Norwood, Mass.) homered and drove in five runs to lead the Bridgewater State University baseball team to a rain-shortened non-conference win Thursday afternoon.

The Bears climbed over the .500 mark with a 13-1 victory over Emerson College at Alumni Park in a game that was called after six innings.

BSU (13-12) scored all of their runs in the first three innings, getting seven of them in the second.

Starter Jaden Arruda (Seekonk, Mass.) and Cameron Breault (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) combined to limit the Lions to four hits. Arruda, who was making his first collegeiate start, allowed just one unearned run on one hit over four innings with no walks and five strikeouts.

Scott Emerson (Peabody, Mass.) went 3-for-5 to lead the Bears while Wladkowski and Philip Messina (Dunkirk, N.Y.) had two hits each.

BSU jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first inning when Wladkowski hit a three-run homer with two outs after walks to Ryan Flaherty (Duxbury, Mass.) and Steven Simon (Hanover, Mass.).

The homer to right field was the third of the season for Wladkowski and the tenth of his career.

The Bears built the lead to 10-0 in the second inning, getting six hits.

Emerson drove in the first run of the inning with a single up the middle, bringing in Messina, who had doubled to left field.

Flaherty and Simon drew bases-loaded walks, scoring Cam James (Ipswich, Mass.), who had singled, and Emerson.

Wladkowski then singled through the right side to score Lindsay and Flaherty. DJ Prampin (Worcester, Mass.) delivered an RBI single to left and Riley Thornell (Wareham, Mass.) brought in the seventh run of the frame with a groundout.

BSU added three runs in the third, using three walks, an error and a wild pitch.

Emerson singled to left and Lindsay walked. Flaherty reached on an outfield error, which scored Emerson, and a wild pitch brought in Lindsay.

The Bears' final run came home on a fielder's choice by Thornell.

Arruda did not allow a hit until there were two outs in the fourth inning.

Nicholas Favazzo (Lexington, Mass.) had reached on an error and scored the Lions' lone run on a double to right-center by Braeden O'Connell (Boxford, Mass.).

Emerson managed just three more singles against Arruda and Breault.

BSU and Emerson met for the first time last season when the Bears were swept by the Lions in a doubleheader in Brockton.

BSU is on the road Friday for a 3:30 p.m. game against Worcester State University in the MASCAC.

The Bears return home Saturday for a doubleheader beginning at noon against Worcester State.

Emerson (5-20) will travel to Lewiston, Maine Saturday to play games against Bates College at 1 p.m. and Wesleyan at 4 p.m.