WORCESTER, Mass. – The Bridgewater State University baseball team dropped a pair of Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) games to host Worcester State University on Saturday afternoon at Lyons Diamond. The Lancers won the first games, 3-0, and completed the sweep with a 2-1 victory in the nightcap.
The doubleheader marked the MASCAC opener for the visiting Bears (1-4, 0-2 MASCAC) and the season-opener for the Lancers (2-0, 2-0 MASCAC).
Game One
Sean Mahan (Woburn, Mass.) and Chris Elliott (Plymouth, Mass.) combined on the four-hit shutout to lead Worcester State to the 3-0 victory in game one of the twinbill. Mahan (1-0) gave up just three hits and a walk with five strikeouts over five scoreless innings to record his first win of the season. Elliott got the final six outs including one strikeout to post his first save.
Sean Devin (Lynn, Mass.) broke up a scoreless game with a two-run single in the bottom of the fourth. The Lancers tacked on an unearned run in the sixth on Chris Ausiello's (Tyngsboro, Mass.) RBI single.
David Kerns (East Cambridge, Mass.) pitched effectively in the start for the Bears. Kerns (0-2) allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits over 5 2/3 innings with no walks and four strikeouts. Ethan Grade (South Windsor, Conn.) came on in relief in the bottom of the sixth and retired the only batter he faced.
Game Two
After being held off the scoreboard for the first ten innings of the doubleheader, the Bears finally got on the board in the fourth inning of game two. Luke Tamulevich (Whitman, Mass.) led off the frame with a base hit, stole second and moved to third on a flyout. Joey Molis (Cumberland, R.I.) followed with a sacrifice fly to score Tamulevich and give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
The score remained that way until the bottom of the fifth when the Lancers strung together three hits to push across a pair of runs. After an out to start the inning, three straight singles by Chris Wright (Jefferson, Mass.), Tom Halliwell (Leominster, Mass.) and Thomas DiBattista (Hudson, Mass.) knotted the score at 1-1. Following a walk to Pat Galvin (Shrewsbury, Mass.) to load the bases, Halliwell raced home on Jake Breton's (Wilbraham, Mass.) RBI groundout to put Worcester State on top, 2-1.
Kyle Gray (Braintree, Mass.) picked up his first win of the season on the mound for the Lancers in game two. Gray (1-0) allowed just one run on two hits over five innings of work. He did not issue a walk and fanned two. Ben Smith (Bourne, Mass.) struck out a pair of batters and worked around a two-out single in a scoreless sixth inning. Kevin Zarnoch Jr. (Boston, Mass.) retired the side in the seventh, including a strikeout, to record his first save of the year.
Matt Josselyn (Hanson, Mass.) pitched well in the loss for the Bears. Josselyn (0-2) gave up just two runs on four hits over five innings with a pair of walks and two strikeouts. Colin Josselyn (Hanson, Mass.) came on in relief of his brother in the bottom of the sixth and retired all three batters he faced including one strikeout.
Up Next: The 2021 schedule continues for both teams next week with MASCAC doubleheaders. Bridgewater State hosts MCLA on Friday, April 2nd with game one of the twinbill getting underway at 2:00 PM. Worcester State entertains Salem State University in a pair of game on Thursday, April 1st also at 2:00 PM.