BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott baseball team split a conference doubleheader with Western New England University (WNEU) on a cold and rainy Saturday afternoon at North Field. Endicott took game one, 5-2, but fell in the nightcap by an 11-1 score versus the Golden Bears.
GAME ONE: Endicott 5, WNEU 2
Nick Quattro (Canton, Conn.) picked up the win (3-3) on 5 2/3 innings pitched, three hits, two runs (one earned), three walks, and a game-high six strikeouts. Will Bryant (Cumberland, Maine) closed the door over the final 1 1/3 innings, as the sophomore right-hander yielded one hit and a walk alongside two strikeouts.
Bob Hamel (Southwick, Mass.) received the loss (5-2) over six innings of work, nine hits, five runs (all earned), two free passes, and three strikeouts.
Endicott scored two runs in the second and two more in the third, all on singles. Ian Schmidt (Plymouth, Conn.), Steve Morganelli (Milford, Mass.), Michael Casciano (Somers, Conn.), and Michael DeDonato (Chelmsford, Mass.) all collected RBIs during that stretch.
Chris Seidl (Dracut, Mass.) also knocked in the Gulls' insurance run in the bottom of the sixth with a sacrifice fly to center that scored DeDonato from third base.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Bryant inherited the bases loaded when he entered the game in the sixth, but squandered the Golden Bears rally with a ground out to keep the game at 4-2, at the time.
- In the seventh, Bryant worked around a first-and-second, two-out situation to secure the win, and his second save of his career.
- Casciano was 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI. It marks his ninth multi-hit game this season.
- DeDonato went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and one RBI. DeDonato now has a team-best four 3-hit games this season. He also has compiled seven multi-hit games this year.
FOR THE FOES
- Eric Lacaire (Worcester, Mass.) had an RBI triple in the fourth, while Jared Rosenblatt (Avon, Conn.) drew a bases loaded walk in the sixth.
- Ben LaCroix (Branford, Conn.) posted a 2-for-4 showing out of the three-hole to go along with one run scored.
GAME TWO: WNEU 11, Endicott 1
Paul Wetmore (Hamden, Conn.) guided the Golden Bears to the split with a complete game, seven strikeout performance. Wetmore scattered six hits in the outing, allowed just one run (earned), and only walked one batter to move to 4-2 on the season.
Colby Morris (Newburyport, Mass.) was tagged with the loss (1-3) on one inning, two hits, two runs (both earned), one walk, and a strikeout.
WNEU jumped on Endicott early with seven runs over the first three innings of play. Alex Loparco (Riverside, Conn.) highlighted the Golden Bears' offense efforts during that stretch with a solo homer in the first.
Rosenblatt also launched a solo homer in the fourth, while DeDonato broke up the shutout for Endicott in the bottom half of the same frame with an RBI double to left center.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- WNEU holds a slim 21-19 advantage in the all-time series over Endicott.
- Mike Kochiss (Fairfield, Conn.) went 2-for-3 from the three spot in the lineup. Kochiss leads the team in multi-hit games with 15 (two ahead of second place).
- The Gulls are 10-6 at North Field this season.
FOR THE FOES
- Loparco was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBI.
- Rosenblatt went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBI, while Daniel Morin (Salem, N.H.) also collected multiple hits in game two with a 2-for-5 line (one run, two RBI).
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (15-15, 7-5 CCC) takes on Gordon this coming Monday on the road at 2/4:30 PM. WNEU (18-11, 7-5 CCC) hosts Roger Williams tomorrow at 12/2:30 PM. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.