BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott baseball team hosted MIT on Sunday afternoon at North Field and the Gulls were handed a tough 3-2 loss in extra innings.
Endicott took the early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Benjamin Schena (Cheshire, Conn.) singled up the middle and then stole second. He advanced to third on a ground out from Matt Bald (De Pere, Wisc.) before rounding home on a wild pitch to give the Gulls the lead.
MIT responded in the top of the fifth with a run of its own to tie the game at 1-1. Cory O'Shea (Glen Allen, Va.) hit a double down the left field line and then scored on a single from Matt Johnston (Portola Valley, Calif.).
Schena singled to right center in the bottom of the sixth to drive in a run and help Endicott gain the 2-1 advantage but the Engineers fought back to tie the game at 2-2 in their next at-bat.
Neither team was able to regain the lead by the end of nine innings, so the contest went into extras.
MIT's Tony Rice (Colorado Springs, Colo.) got into scoring position in the top of the 11th after walking and then stealing second. Jared Schwait (Boca Raton, Fla.) hit a single down the left field line to send Rice home and give the Engineers the slight 3-2 lead.
The Gulls attempted to rally in the bottom of the 11th but MIT held them scoreless to secure the 3-2 win.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Leading Endicott offensively was Schena who went 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and a run. He also recorded two stolen bases throughout the contest.
- Victor Molle (Peabody, Mass.) shifted to 0-3 on the season (1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO).
- Ben Burke (Chelmsford, Mass.) was credited with the win for the Engineers (3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO).
- Endicott leads the all-time series against MIT, 11-5.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (13-9) hosts Saint Joseph's (Me.) for a 3:30 PM nonconference matchup on Tuesday, April 9. MIT (13-7-1) hosts the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Tuesday, April 9 at 3:30 PM.
For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
(Photo Credit - David Le '10)
