WORCESTER, Mass. - The Worcester State University baseball team started off their 2021 season strong, taking down the Bridgewater State Bears in both games of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Lyons Diamond.
The contests marked the first time Worcester State baseball was in action in over a year. The last time the Lancers ran out onto the diamond was March 4, 2020, in a loss to Dean College. A matter of days later, the remainder of the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Worcester State starts off 2-0 on the season with these two wins, while Bridgewater State falls to 1-4.
Game 1 - Worcester State 3, Bridgewater State 0
The first three innings of game one were quiet, with both pitchers posting a shutout. Senior Sean Mahan (Woburn, Mass.) had five strikeouts in the first three innings alone for the Lancers. This included a three-strikeout inning in the top of the second. Mahan only allowed one hit through the first three innings. Meanwhile, for the Bears, junior David Kerns (East Cambridge, Mass.) only allowed three hits in the first three innings and struck out two batters.
Worcester State opened the scoring in the fourth, posting a pair to take a 2-0 lead. It all started with a double from senior Pat Galvin (Shrewsbury, Mass.). Senior Jake Breton (Wilbraham, Mass.) was then hit by a pitch, and junior Mike Chaves Jr. (Husdon, Mass.) put down a sacrifice bunt to get two runners in scoring position. Junior Sean Devin (Lynn, Mass.) finished off the sequence with a textbook single up the middle to score Galvin and Breton.
The Lancers struck again in the sixth when sophomore Chris Ausiello (Tyngsboro, Mass.) was able to bring home Chaves with a single up the middle, extending the lead to 3-0.
In what ended up being a true pitchers' duel, Mahan led the way for the Lancers. Senior Chris Elliott (Plymouth, Mass.) came in for the save in the last two innings, allowing only one hit. This capped off a clean-cut 3-0 victory for Worcester State.
Game 2 - Worcester State 2, Bridgewater State 1
Just like in game one, the first three innings had radio silence on the offensive front. Senior Kyle Gray (Braintree, Mass.) was on the mound for Worcester State and junior Matt Josselyn (Hanson, Mass.) was pitching for Bridgewater State. Neither pitcher allowed a hit through the first three innings.
The Bears opened up the scoring in the top of the fourth. Senior Luke Tamulevich (Whitman, Mass.) had a busy inning. He opened up the fourth by singling to left and proceeded to swiftly steal second base. Freshman Joey Molis (Cumberland, R.I.) brought Tamulevich home with a sac fly two batters later, giving Bridgewater State a 1-0 lead.
However, Worcester State struck back the very next inning. A couple of singles from sophomore Chris Wright (Jefferson, Mass.) and freshman Tom Halliwell (Leominster, Mass.) started things off. Another single from junior Thomas DiBattista (Hudson, Mass.) scored Wright and advanced Halliwell to second.
Galvin then drew a walk, loading up the bases for Breton. Breton grounded out to third, but everyone was able to advance on the play, bringing Halliwell home, putting the Lancers up 2-1 after six and rounded off the scoring for the game.
Josselyn pitched five innings for the Bears, allowing four hits with two strikeouts. His brother, graduate student Colin Josselyn (Hanson, Mass.), took the mound in the sixth to finish things off.
Gray ended the day with two strikeouts, allowing only two hits over five innings for the win. Sophomores Ben Smith (Bourne, Mass.) and Kevin Zarnoch Jr. (Boston, Mass.) pitched the sixth and seventh innings, respectively. Zarnoch was credited with the save, finishing off a solid 2-1 victory for the Lancers.
Worcester State will be back in action on Thursday, April 1 against Salem State. Game one of the doubleheader is set to begin at 2 p.m.
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