BEVERLY, Mass. – After a week-long hiatus due to weather complications, the Endicott baseball team finally returned to North Field Saturday afternoon to begin Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play with a doubleheader split against Eastern Nazarene.
GAME 1: ENDICOTT 4, EASTERN NAZARENE 0 (7 INN.)
Junior right fielder Michael Casciano (Somers, Conn.) got the Gulls on the scoreboard as he led off the top of the second with a solo blast to left field.
Junior second baseman Michael DeDonato's (Chelmsford, Mass.) RBI triple in the third plated junior left fielder Nick Berno (St. Albans, VT.), while freshman third baseman Joseph Deutsch's (Fairfield, Conn.) single to right brought home sophomore pinch runner Dan Cacciola (Saugus, Mass.) in the fourth.
DeDonato's second RBI of the afternoon scored Berno again to add an insurance run for Endicott in the fifth.
Sophomore righty Kevin Gould (Rollinsford, N.H.) got the ball in game one for his fourth start of the year and dealt five scoreless innings of three-hit baseball. He issued one free pass and a registered a career-high eight punchouts to earn his team-best third win of the season (3-0).
GAME 2: EASTERN NAZARENE 4, ENDICOTT 2 (7 INN.)
The Lions got on the board early with two runs in the top of the first and another in the second to take a 3-0 lead over the Gulls.
Endicott fought back for one run in the third and had a chance to make some noise in the last frame as Casciano legged out an RBI infield single with two outs and runners on the corners to plate DeDonato for the second time in the game.
Junior designated hitter Bailey Train (Cumberland, Maine) stepped up to the plate with runners on first and second and the Gulls trailing by two, but senior Zach Zaino (Falmouth, Mass.) converted his first three-out save of the season by fanning the final batter he faced.
Junior pitcher Alex Way (Syracuse, N.Y.) led the way in game two, allowing just one run (unearned) on four hits in six innings of work while walking three and fanning five batters to pick up his third win of the season (3-0).
Freshman righthander Joseph Oriola (Sandwich, Mass.) suffered the loss (0-2) as he lasted 3 1/3 innings and gave up three runs (one earned) on four hits, issued two walks, and struck out two before being replaced by graduate student Nick Quattro (Canton, Conn.) who mowed down a season-high eight batters and escaped several jams in 3 2/3 innings of relief on the bump.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Gulls are now 30-9-1 against the Lions in the all-time series, including a doubleheader sweep last season (W, 13-3; W, 11-4) on April 29, 2016 in Quincy, Mass. in the most recent meeting before today.
- Casciano homered for the first time in his career in game one.
- Graduate student Anthony Serina (Portsmouth, R.I.) went 3-for-4 in game two with one double.
- DeDonato scored both runs for Endicott in the second game.
FOR THE FOES
- Junior pitcher Brent Houle (Westfield, Mass.) was handed the loss (1-2) in game one on five innings pitched, as he allowed all four earned runs on seven hits, with four walks and five strikeouts.
- Connor Simpson (Haverhill, Mass.) and Zaino registered extra base hits (double, triple), respectively, in game one.
- Devin Haberstumpf (Forest Hills, N.Y.) recorded a triple in game two for the Lions' only extra-base knock in the second half of the twin bill.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (6-4, 1-1 CCC) takes on Bates at home on Sunday, March 26 at 1:00 p.m. in a game previously planned to be play at Bates but was moved due to field conditions.
Eastern Nazarene (5-6, 1-1 CCC) travels to Lasell on Tuesday, March 28 at 7:00 p.m. in non-conference action. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
