Minor pitches Engineers past Gulls

Minor pitches Engineers past Gulls
Box Score

BEVERLY, Mass. – WPI’s Sean Minor (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) went the distance, tossing nine innings and allowing only two runs on eight hits as the Engineers defeated Endicott College, 7-2, in non-conference baseball action on Wednesday afternoon in Beverly, Mass. With the win, WPI improves to 23-10 while the Gulls fall to 27-17. \#Andrew Betts\# (Bristol, Conn.) was 2-for-4 at the plate with a run scored to lead the Gulls.

The Engineers struck first to open the game as Bryan Watkins (Belmont, Mass.) and Paul Galligan (Weymouth, Mass.) led off with back-to-back singles and moved into scoring position via a double steal. Matt Moreau (Manchester, N.H.) plated the first run with a sacrifice fly before Galligan came around to score on an RBI double by Jameson Kokolis (Manchester, N.H.).

The Gulls got one back in their half of the second inning as \#Joe Kasabuski\# (Saugus, Mass.) doubled down the left field line and later came around to score on an RBI single by \#Mike Russo\# (Natick, Mass.). WPI pushed their lead back to two runs when Mark Dignum (Albany, N.Y.) scored from third as the Gulls turned a double play in the fourth.

In the fifth inning, WPI scored four runs on RBI singles from Moreau, Nick Bean (Middleboro, Mass.) and Cody McGregor (Westfield, Mass.) to take a 7-1 lead. Endicott scored one run in their half of the fifth as Betts tripled to right-centerfield and scored on a sac-fly by \#Aaron Santos\# (Cambridge, Mass.). That would be as close as the Gulls would get, however, as Minor allowed only two hits over the final four innings to keep the Blue and Green at bay.

\#Joe Kasabuski\# helped lead the Endicott attack as he went 2-for-2 with a run scored and a pair of walks. \#Andrew Betts\# also had a multi-hit day, going 2-for-4 with a run, while \#Colin Sitarz\# (West Hartford, Conn.) went 2-for-4 as well. Senior \#Colin McGinn\# (Tolland, Conn.) suffered the setback for the Gulls, allowing seven runs (six earned) on nine hits in just four innings of work. Classmate \#Matt Sharon\# (Wallingford, Vt.) pitched well in relief, going 2.2 innings and allowing only one hit while striking out one.

WPI was led by the bottom of the order as its seven-through-nine hitters, Mark Dignum, Cody McGregor and Joe Walsh (Weymouth, Mass.), combined to go 7-for-12 with a run scored and an RBI. Matt Moreau was 1-for-2 with three RBI while James Kokolis was 2-for-5 with a run scored and an RBI. Sean Minor was the story of the ballgame, tossing a complete game and allowing only two earned runs while scattering eight hits.

The Blue and Green now await word on a bid to the ECAC Tournament which begins next Wednesday, May 12th. WPI takes on Amherst College on Thursday afternoon at 4:00 p.m.