May 5, 2006
BABSON PARK, MA - Senior Kyle Hammerschmidt (Lawrenceville, N.J.) earned the win in his final collegiate game and first-year Pete Bizinkauskas (Duxbury, Mass.) notched his first career save as the Babson College baseball team defeated visiting Endicott College, 9-4, in a non-conference matchup on Friday afternoon. With the win, the Beavers will head into Sunday's season-ending double-header with a record of 19-16, while the Gulls fall to 23-19 on the year.
Endicott held a 3-1 lead after two and a half, but Babson came back with three unearned runs in the bottom of the third to jump in front, 4-3. Sophomore Robbie Leer (Edina, Minn.) drove in classmate Matt Delaney (Newton, Mass.) and senior tri-captain Teddy Dziuba (Wayne, N.J.) with a two-out single to right, and sophomore Steve Tahmoush (Arlington, Mass.) gave the Beavers the lead when he singled in Leer two batters later.
The Gulls tied the game at 4-4 in the top of the fourth, as junior Abe Bellini (Watertown, Mass.) led off with a single, moved to third on a base hit by junior Erik Fields (Swampscott, Mass.), and scored on a perfectly executed squeeze play by sophomore Tom Warner (Hopkinton, N.H.). However, Babson would take the lead for good in the bottom of the inning, as Delaney singled in senior tri-captain Chris Mearn (Milton, Mass.) and later scored on an RBI-double by junior Ryan Campbell (Manchester, N.H.). The Beavers then added another run in the fifth and two more in the sixth to build a 9-4 advantage.
After surrendering three earned runs through the first four, Hammerschmidt settled down to retire the side in order in the fifth. He then struck out the first batter in the sixth before giving up back-to-back singles. Bizinkauskas then came on in relief and, after walking the first hitter he faced, induced a fielder's choice and a strike out to get out of the inning. Endicott would manage four hits over the final three innings, but the rookie reliever pitched out of each jam to secure the win.
For the game, Hammerschmidt (2-5) allowed three earned runs while striking out seven in 5 1/3 innings, as he improved his record to 2-5 on the season. The winning pitcher in Babson's first-ever NEWMAC Championship victory back in 2004, the senior righthander will graduate with a career mark of 8-7. Bizinkauskas earned the save after tossing 3 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out two along the way.
Eight different players recorded hits for Babson, while Delaney stole three bases and scored three times. Fields led Endicott with three hits in five at-bats, while Warner, Bellini, and senior Kevin Donahue (Reading, Mass.) each added two hits. Senior righthander Matt Bishop (Woburn, Mass.) was victimized by poor defense behind him in the loss (6-2), as four of the six runs he allowed in 3 2/3 innings were unearned. The Gulls committed a total of five errors on the day.