AUBURNDALE, Fla. – Endicott scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a 5-5 tie and closed the door on a 7-5 victory over Framingham State on Monday afternoon at the Russ Matt Central Florida Invitational.
Seven different players knocked in runs for the Gulls, who start the season 3-0 and face Bowdoin on Tuesday at 2:00 pm.
Endicott jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning thanks to RBI singles by Tad Gold (Martha's Vineyard, Mass.) and Colin Sitarz (W. Hartford, Conn.), only to see the Rams tie the game in the third with two runs off of just one hit.
Ivan Colon (Waltham, Mass.), who was on base three times for the Rams, added a sacrifice fly after senior Will Crofton (Hopkinton, Mass.) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to get Framingham State on the board.
The teams stayed knotted at two runs until the bottom of the fifth, when Endicott grabbed the advantage thanks to an RBI single by sophomore Harry Oringer (Dartmouth, Mass.), which plated Taylor English (Barre, Vt.), who had taken one of five Endicott walks on the day.
Framingham State scored single runs in each of the next three innings, but the Gulls kept pace with two runs in the sixth on an RBI double by E.J. Martinez (Brooklyn, N.Y.), who then scored on a groundout by Ralph Fidaleo (Fairfield, Conn.).
Rams sophomore center fielder Matt Gerard (Milford, Mass.) scored an unearned run on a wild pitch to knot the game at five in the top of the eighth, but Martinez got on in the bottom of the frame for Endicott when he was hit by a pitch with one out, starting the game-winning rally for Endicott.
First year lefty Mike Walkowicz (Amherst, Mass.) made the start for the Gulls and took a no-decision, allowing just two earned runs on five hits over four innings.
The win went to senior Kevin Dupras, who finished the eighth inning for the Gulls to keep the game tied, while Connor McLaughlin pitched a scoreless ninth to record his second save of the young season.
Framingham State's sophomore pitcher Kevin Valley (Burlington, Mass.) took the loss, giving two runs on two hits in the eighth.
The Rams fall to 1-4 on the season and have a double-header against Amherst up next, with the first game on Tuesday at 9:45 am.
