LA VERNE, Calif. – Endicott opened up their seven-game schedule against Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) opponents with a doubleheader sweep of La Verne by capturing 6-4 and 11-8 victories on Sunday. The games were played at La Verne's Ben Hines Field.

GAME ONE: ENDICOTT 6, LA VERNE 4

In their first of a seven-game schedule against Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), Endicott got a strong start from senior left-handed starter Will Ferreira (Nantucket, Mass.) and RBIs from five different hitters in the lineup as the Gulls handed La Verne a 6-4 loss in game one of their doubleheader.

Ferreira, pitching in his second straight start getting the ball in Endicott's 3-2 season opening win against Stevens last Sunday, allowed two earned runs on five hits with two strikeouts to get his first win of the season. After 2 1/3 IP of relief from sophomore Alexander Mandrus (Acton, Mass.), Gulls junior closer Will Bryant (Cumberland, Maine) pitching the final inning for his second save. Bryant allowed two baserunners on a hit and a walk but struck out two to help close the door on the Leopards.

Endicott scored first in the top of the third on a sacrifice fly to center off the bat of junior outfielder Matt Bald (De Pere, Wisc.). In the top of the fourth, Endicott added two more runs on a RBI single to left center by senior Michael Casciano (Somers, Conn.) and a successful double steal attempt that saw Casciano swipe home plate.

La Verne cut the Gulls' lead down to 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth as senior first baseman Nicholas Michaels (Redlands, Calif.) hit a two-RBI single up the middle. Endicott would get one of those runs back in the top of the sixth on an infield groundout that scored Perkins from third base.

The Gulls got two critical runs in the top of the seventh on back-to-back RBI singles by senior second baseman Michael DeDonato (Chelmsford, Mass.) and sophomore catcher Brendan McDonald (Quincy, Mass.) to make it a 6-2 advantage for the Gulls. La Verne would plate two runs in the bottom of eighth on a single to left center by Chris Legot (Burbank, Calif.) and a sacrifice fly by Adam Santa Cruz (Victorville, Calif.) to pull within two but Bryant secured the Endicott win with his second save of the year.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• This was the first meeting between Endicott and La Verne in either program's history.
• Casciano led Endicott with three hits with Perkins and Bald also registering multi-hit games.
• Ferreira's win was his first since May 6, 2015 – a 6-5 win over Salve Regina in the CCC Tournament
• Since taking over as closer in 2017, Bryant has nine career saves

FOR THE FOES

• Leopards outfielder Christopher Peres (Burbank, Calif.) went 3-for-5 at the plate with a run scored to lead La Verne.
• Michaels finished the game 2-for-5 with two RBIs in the loss.
• Sophomore righty Cody Norman (Vacaville, Calif.) took the loss after going 5 2/3 IP to drop to 1-3 on the year. He gave up four runs, three earned, on seven hits with three strikeouts.

GAME TWO: ENDICOTT 11, LA VERNE 8

Game two saw Endicott and La Verne combine for 19 runs and 22 hits, but an eight-run top of the fourth inning helped catapult the Gulls to complete the doubleheader sweep of the Leopards.

Leading the offensive outburst for Endicott was freshman Nickolas Perkins (Nashua, N.H.) who drove in four runs on a RBI single in the top of the third and cleared the bases on double to center as part of the Gulls' marquee top of the fourth inning. Junior Matt Bald (De Pere, Wisc.) had his best game in his collegiate career with a 3-for-5 effort at the plate with two RBIs and two runs scored.

In relief, Endicott freshman reliever Cooper Anibal (Bedford, N.H.) earned his first collegiate victory by tossing three effective innings, giving up one unearned run on two hits with one strikeout. Gulls senior righty Victor Molle (Peabody, Mass.) threw the final 1 2/3 innings for his third career save as he got four outs via strikeout.

Nicholas Michaels (Redlands, Calif.) once again led La Verne with two RBIs with two infield groundouts that drove home runs. Leopards starting pitcher Nick Byrd (Oceanside, Calif.) suffered the loss by allowing five earned runs on five hits and a walk.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott took both games of their doubleheader versus La Verne to open their SCIAC schedule in Southern California.
• Michael DeDonato (Chelmsford, Mass.) and Joseph Deutsch (Fairfield, Conn.) both had multi-hit games. Deutsch also scored twice while DeDonato crossed the plate once.
• Gulls freshman Matthew McKinley (Hudson, N.H.) went 3-for-5 with a walk, RBI, and a run.

FOR THE FOES

• Leadoff man, freshman Gabe Lopez (Yorba Linda, Calif.) had two hits in four trips to the dish with two runs scored.
• Graduate student Jakob Thomas (Murrieta, Calif.) walked twice, scored twice, and registered a RBI on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth.
• Brandon Vogel (Villa Park, Calif.), Adam Santa Cruz (Victorville, Calif.), and Jacob Benson (San Diego, Calif.) all had a single RBI in the loss.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (3-0) is back in action tomorrow at SCIAC opponent Redlands (13-4, 7-2 SCIAC) for a 6:00 PM EST first pitch. La Verne (8-7, 7-2 SCIAC) returns to action tomorrow at home against Dickinson.

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