Box Score BOSTON, Mass. – No. 1 UMass Boston used an early 5-0 lead to cruise to an 11-3 victory over No. 3 University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Friday afternoon during day three action of the 2016 Little East Conference Baseball Tournament at Monan Park.
THE BASICS
#1 UMass Boston 11, #3 UMass Dartmouth
(UMass Boston 28-13)
(UMass Dartmouth 18-22)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Beacons jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead as sophomore Josh Lopez (New Haven, Conn.) and junior Dan Mantoni (Northbridge, Mass.) opened the game with back-to-back singles before junior Dave Murphy (Plymouth, Mass.) launched his team-leading eighth home run over the monster in left to give UMass Boston the early cushion.
In the bottom half of the first, UMass Dartmouth junior Taylor Cacciola blooped a single through the right side for his 100th career hit but UMB freshman southpaw JT Morin (Wilton, Conn.) retired the side to keep the Beacons ahead, 3-0.
Mantoni added a blast of his own in the second inning, driving a two-run bomb to dead centerfield to give UMass Boston a 5-0 lead. The homer was his sixth of the year and hit to the deepest part of Monan Park.
UMass Boston extended the lead to 6-0 with the help of an unearned run in the third. Freshman first baseman Charlie Huegi (Sandy Hook, Conn.) doubled to left and scored on a sac fly to centerfield by sophomore Sal Frosceno (Derby, Conn.).
Cacciola picked up his second hit of the afternoon in the fourth, connecting on a one-out double to the base of the left field wall. Morin and the Beacons worked out of the inning without any damage to preserve the 6-0 advantage heading into the fifth frame.
The Corsairs made some noise in the fifth drawing back-to-back walks to open the inning and both runners would eventually score to get the Corsairs on the board. A UMB wild pitch moved both baserunners into scoring position before UMass Dartmouth sophomore Josh O'Neill laced a single to right to drive in the first UMD run, cutting the score to 6-1. Freshman centerfielder DeVon King made it 6-2 with a sac fly to right but Morin retired the side to keep the Beacons on top by four.
The Beacons got the runs back in the seventh as junior catcher Anthony Searles tripled to the centerfield triangle, driving in a pair to bump the UMB lead to 8-2. Huegi made it 9-2 win an RBI single up the middle to pick up Searles from third to open up a seven-run cushion.
Cacciola stayed hot with an RBI single in the eighth for his third hit of the game to pull UMass Dartmouth to a 9-3 score but it was the only run that UMB freshman relief pitcher Bobby Tramondozzi (Peabody, Mass.) would allow in relief of Morin. The Beacons added two more runs in the top of the ninth to account for the 11-3 final as the rookie southpaw worked the final four innings to earn the first save of his collegiate career.
Morin earned the win working five innings allowing two runs on three hits while striking out five to improve to 5-0 on the year. UMD junior Sean Callahan suffered the loss working just two innings and allowing five runs to fall to 4-4. Tramondozzi earned his first collegiate save, by working the final four innings.
BY THE NUMBERS
- The Beacons improved to 2-2 all-time against the Corsairs in LEC Tournament play and avenged losses to UMass Dartmouth in each of the past two tournaments.
- Murphy is hitting .390 on the season at home with six of his team-leading nine home runs.
- Lopez reached base in three of his six trips to the plate, with two singles and a walk.
RELEASE COURTESY OF DAN CAMPAGNA, EMMANUEL COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION DIRECTOR
