On a no hitter from pitcher John Gegetskas, Westfield State advanced to the championship game of the MASCAC Baseball Tournament while Fitchburg State remained alive in the tournament after an elimination game win over Bridgewater State.

#1 Westfield State 12, #3 Framingham State 0   8 Innings          Box Score

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State senior lefthander John Gegetskas (Windsor, Conn.) threw a no-hitter as Westfield State defeated Framingham State, 12-0 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference baseball tournament at Bud and Jim Hagan Field on Thursday and propel the Owls into the tournament's championship round on Saturday.

Gegetskas faced the minimum, 24 hitters as the game was shortened by the MASCAC's 12-run rule in the bottom of the eighth as Owls leftfielder Casey Boudreau (Shrewsbury, Mass.)  singled home Jake Gibb (Stoughton, Mass.) with the walk-off run and make the no-no official.

The only runner to reach base was Framingham's Aaron Williams as he reached on an error to lead off the top of the fourth inning, and he was erased on the next play as Kyle Lippert grounded into a 4-6-3 double play.

Gegetskas struck out seven and walked none. He got support in the field with a diving grab of a line drive from right fielder nick martin in the third inning, and got a sliding stop from second baseman Tyler Beach (Qunicy, Mass.) in the seventh.  In the top of the eighth, the Rams' Bobby Higgins hit a hard one-hopped that richocheted off Gegetskas' foot towards third, but the big lefty ranged toward third and retired Higgins for the first out of the eighth. 

It's the first no-hitter for Westfield since Joe Hevey tossed one against Mass Maritime in 1988, and the fifth in school history, joining Bill Babinski (1965), Butch LaMagdelaine (1978), and Jeff Turok (1980).

Gegetskas improved to 6-3 on the season.   He has 83 strikeouts on the season, just three short of his school-record of 86 set a year ago.

Westfield got all the offense it would need in the second inning, as Aaron Clancy (Quincy, Mass.) singled, Boudreau doubled, and Beach plated them both with a base hit through the left side for a 2-0 Owls lead.  Westfield got two more in the fifth, and then erupted for six in the sixth inning, getting an RBI single from Michael Cruz(Springfield, Mass.) and a two-run single from Boudreau.  Boudreau finished 3-5 with three rbi.  Beach finished 2-4 with two RBI, and Martin and Clancy each added a pair of hits.

Framingham starter Kevin Connelly (3-6) took the loss.

Framingham (22-18) drops into the elimination bracket in the tournament, and will face Fitchburg State at 11 am on Saturday in Westfield.  The loser of that game is eliminated, with the winner advancing to play Westfield State (26-13) in the championship round with a 2:30 p.m. start time.   The Owls will have two chances to win the tourney, as play continues until there is only one team left in the double-elimination format.

#2 Fitchburg State 13, #5 Bridgewater State 12      Box Score

Rindge, N.H. – The second seeded Falcons of Fitchburg State defeated the fifth seeded Bears of Bridgewater State, 13-12 this afternoon in semifinal round action of the 2019 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Baseball Post-Season Tournament at Pappas Field on the Campus of Franklin Pierce University.

Bridgewater State took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first as junior Jonathan Livolsi (Bridgewater, Mass.) singled to left center to score freshman Liam Bell (Wells, Maine) before senior Dominic Precopio (Framingham, Mass.) followed with an RBI single.

Fitchburg State responded in the bottom half of the frame when senior Noah Milliard (Leominster, Mass.), junior Brennan Cuddahy (Leominster, Mass.), freshman Vincent Eramo (Shirley, Mass.), junior Timothy Horton (Northampton, Mass.) and junior Matthew Pingitore (Rutland, Mass.) connected on RBI base knocks for the 5-2 advantage.

The Bears knotted the score (5-5) in the top half of the third with senior Colin Josselyn (Hanson, Mass.) lacing a two-run double down the right field line. Bridgewater State regained the lead in the top of the fourth on a two-run double by junior Lewis Robinson (New Britain, Conn.), while Precopio added a sacrifice fly for the 9-5 edge.

The Falcons answered back yet again in the bottom of the fifth, scoring six runs, highlighted by a two run single to right off the bat of sophomore Nicholas Cordeau (Melrose, Mass.)to take an 11-9 advantage. The Green and Gold upped their margin in the bottom of the sixth as Eramo blasted his third home run of the season to make the score 13-9.

Bridgewater State battled back to cut the lead to 13-12 in the top of the seventh on a two-run single from newcomer Ruben Gonzalez (Stoughton, Mass.) and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Robinson. Fitchburg State secured the victory however as sophomore Shaun Gamelin (West Kingstown, R.I.) closed out the ninth to earn his sixth save on the season.

Falcons will take on the Rams of Framingham State University on Saturday at Westfield State University in semifinal round action of the 2019 MASCAC Baseball Post-Season Tournament at 11:00 AM. Bears conclude their 2019 season with an overall record of 17-22 and an 11-10 mark in conference play.

Releases courtesy of Westfield State and Fitchburg State Sports Information