AUBURNDALE, Fla. – Day two of Endicott's schedule at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational featured a matchup with NESCAC rival Bowdoin at the Lake Myrtle Complex Main Field. Bowdoin claimed a 5-1 victory in game one behind a strong pitching performance from junior lefty Harry Ridge (Yarmouth, Maine) but the Gulls responded in game two, winning 15-8 as six different players recorded RBIs including three apiece from senior Chase Sullivan (Cumberland, R.I.), junior Nicholas De Lotto (Southbury, Conn.), and sophomore Mike Kochiss (Fairfield, Conn.).
Endicott (1-3), after earning their first win of the 2015 season, now look ahead to a matchup with the nation's seventh-ranked program in Birmingham-Southern (14-1) on Tuesday afternoon. First pitch is at 3:30 p.m. from Chain O'Lakes Field #5 in Winter Haven.
Game One: Bowdoin 5, Endicott 1
A three-run inning for Bowdoin broke open a scoreless game in the top of the third and provided enough offense for Polar Bears junior starter Harry Ridge who threw six shutout frames to earn the win. Ridge struck out three batters and allowed only four hits in the game one victory.
In the top of the third, Bowdoin junior first baseman Chad Martin (Rowley, Mass.) drove home a pair of runs on a double down the left field line and later scored himself on a passed ball to put the Polar Bears up 3-0.
Bowdoin would add two more insurance runs in the top of the seventh on a two-RBI single to left center by sophomore Sean Mullaney (Leominser, Mass.) that plated senior captain Aaron Rosen (Morganville, N.J.) and freshman Nick Sadler (Atkinson, N.H.).
Endicott would finally get on the board in their last at bat thanks to a throwing miscue by the Polar Bears defense. With two outs, Gulls junior catcher Josh Drew (Intervale, N.H.) drew a walk and was replaced by freshman Dan Zabbo (Dracut, Mass.) at first base. Zabbo advanced to second on a wild pitch and on a grounder to third base by Cody Hall (Rutland, Mass.) the throw to first went wild allowing the runner to advance home. Bowdoin relief pitcher Jon Fraser (Marshfield, Mass.) got the final out to secure the 5-1 win.
Sophomores Luke Morse (Westford, Mass.) and Eric Nagle (Manchester, Conn.) each took the mound for three-plus innings of work. Morse allowed three runs, two earned, on four hits and three walks with two strikeouts while Nagle was solid, going 3 2/3 innings and allowed two earned runs on three hits and a walk with a strikeout.
Game Two: Endicott 15, Bowdoin 8
Gulls senior captain Harry Oringer (Dartmouth, Mass.) led an Endicott hit parade in game two against Bowdoin, going 4-for-5 with four runs scored and two RBIs on a double in the fifth and a single in the sixth that both drove home runners in scoring position.
Junior first baseman Nicholas De Lotto provided a key hit in an eight-run top of the sixth as he cleared the bases with a well-placed double down the left field line that scored Matthew Paola (Middlebury, Conn.), Kochiss, and Sullivan.
Endicott's two-through-five hitters combined to hit .667 in the game with 13 RBIs and 10 runs scored. At the top of the lineup, sophomore Cam Farnham (Andover, Mass.) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and freshman Michael DeDonato (Chelmsford, Mass.), in his first collegiate at bat, knocked a single up the middle to cap off Endicott's sixth-inning scoring run by bringing home two runners.
On the bump, Endicott righty Owen Bautze (Sudbury, Mass.) made his debut and turned in four strong innings of work before the Bowdoin lineup got to the freshman. Bautze (1-0) allowed four earned runs on seven hits but allowed no walks while striking out two batters. Gulls reliever Nick Quattro (Canton, Conn.) was relied up on to get four outs and was near perfect, striking out three batters while walking just one.
Bowdoin's Martin drove in two runs for the Polar Bears as did designated hitter Erik Jacobsen (Milton, Mass.). Sadler had three RBIs on a sac fly, a RBI single, and a RBI groundout.