Baseball Salvages Split With Westfield State

FROSTPROOF, Fla. – Sophomore Christian Ferri (Bloomfield, N.J.) and freshman Tyler Weninger (Chandler, Ariz.) and each drove in two runs and freshman Robby Sheldon (Dover, N.H.) picked up his first collegiate win after carrying a no-hitter into the sixth inning as the Wentworth Institute of Technology baseball team salvaged a split with Westfield State with an 8-2 win. The Owls had taken a 13-3 win in the opener.

In the first game Wentworth took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first after senior Jake Mailman hit a two-out single and Weninger followed with a single. Weninger would move into scoring position on a passed ball and both players would come around to score on a senior Scott Ouellette (Lewiston, Maine) single. The lead, however would not last long as Westfield State tied the game in the home half of the inning on a two-run home run off the bat of senior Tim Santilli (Southbridge, Mass.).

The Owls took a 3-2 lead in the third on a junior Danny DiMatteo (Dennis, Mass.) RBI double, which plated senior Pat McWilliams (Duxbury, Mass.). Westfield scored two in the fourth on an RBI single from junior Dan McCormack (Shelton, Conn.) and an RBI fielder's choice from McWilliams.

Sophomore Jimmy Temte (Northborough, Mass.) hit his first collegiate home run to make it a 5-3 game in the top of the fifth, however Westfield State broke the game open in the bottom of the sixth, using an eight-run inning to make it a 13-3 contest. McCormack and senior Jeremy Tanguay (Huntington, Mass.) each drove in two runs in the inning.

McCormack was 4-for-5 with three RBI to pace a 16-hit attack for the Owls. Sophomore Nate Barnes (Westfield, Mass.) was 3-for-3, while Santilli, DiMatteo, and junior Evan Moorhouse (Westfield, Mass.) each had two hits. Junior Justin Thomson (Yarmouth Port, Mass.) picked up the win as he allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and struck out seven in five innings of work. Junior Pete Liimatanien (West Barnstable, Mass.) entered the game with a two-run lead and picked up the save, pitching two innings of no-hit ball, striking out three.

Sophomore Zack Bernier (North Dartmouth, Mass.) was tagged with the loss (0-1), allowing five runs on nine hits and striking out seven in four-plus innings of work. Weninger had two of Wentworth's five hits, while Ouellette finished with a pair of RBI.

The Leopards took a 3-0 lead in the home half of the first of the nightcap as Ferri led off with a walk, went to second when senior Joe Hulme (Tewksbury, Mass.) was hit by a pitch, and moved to third when Mailman loaded the bases with a walk. Weninger would single through the left side and Ouellette laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Weninger to second and Mailman to second. Weninger scored on a junior Sam McManus (Hopkinton, N.H.) sacrifice fly.

Sheldon cruised along, setting down 11 batters in a row from the second through fifth innings until an error broke up that streak. However, the error would prove not to be costly as he induced a groundout to end the fifth.

The sixth inning saw junior Dan Whigham (Barre, Mass.) lead off by reaching on an error and would score when McCormack broke up the no-hitter with a double to left center. McCormack, who advanced to third on the Leopards' second miscue of the inning, scored on a McWilliams RBI double to make it 3-2. Santilli singled to move McWilliams to third and a sacrifice from DiMatteo moved Santilli into scoring position. Sheldon got a strikeout before being lifted for senior Dakota Baird (Bermuda Dunes, Calif.), who battled back from a 3-1 hole to get a strikeout to end the threat.

Wentworth broke the game open in the home half of the sixth as sophomore Jordan Burst (Jackson, N.J.) had an RBI single, Temte was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, freshman Bram Grooten (Eindhoven, Netherlands) drove in a run on a groundout, and Ferri had a two-run single. Baird set the side down in order in the seventh to end the game.

Sheldon (1-0) allowed a pair of runs (one earned) on three hits while striking out three in 5.2 innings of work. Baird notched his first save of the season after setting down all four batters he faced, including three by strikeout. Offensively, Grooten had two of the Leopards' five hits while Weninger and Ferri drove in two runs each.

Freshman David Manning (North Attleboro, Mass.) was tagged with the loss (0-1) as he allowed five runs on three hits in five-plus innings of work.

Wentworth (3-1) plays WPI on Wednesday afternoon in a doubleheader.