Baseball Advances in MASCAC Tournament Winner’s Bracket with 12-10 Win over Salem
Salem, Mass. – Junior Mike Andrews (Stoneham, Mass.) pitched a solid seven and two thirds innings of relief as the sixth seeded Framingham State University baseball team upset second seed Salem State University 12-10 in the quarterfinals of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Baseball Tournament at Alumni Field on Sunday afternoon.
The Rams improve to 19-22 and move into the winner's bracket where they will face fourth seed Worcester State at 12:30 tomorrow at Westfield State.
The Vikings (21-19) will play the top seed Owls in an elimination game at 9:30 a.m. on Monday.
Andrews came on in relief in the second inning and allowed five runs, four earned, on nine hits with five strikeouts and no walks to improve to 2-3 on the year.
The Vikings took the early lead with three runs in the bottom of the first. Joe White (Bellingham, Mass.) put Salem State on top with a base hit to right following walks to Brendan Greene (Winchester, Mass.) and Joe Kasper (Lynn, Mass.) to open the inning. Dan Connors (Danvers, Mass.) plated Kasper with a sacrifice fly before a wild pitch scored White with the third run of the inning.
Colton Fontaine (Newburyport, Mass.) led off the second with a base hit off the glove of shortstop Matt Brockett (Guilford, Conn.). Following two stolen bases, Greene knocked in the fourth run with a base hit to center chasing Framingham State starter Michael Raymond (Peabody, Mass.). Andrews relieved Raymond, and after an error added another run, the Vikings led 5-0. Raymond was charged with five runs (four earned) on three hits and three walks.
Salem State starter Steve Leavitt (Peabody, Mass.) ran into trouble in the third as Framingham State rallied, scoring eight runs on six hits in the inning. Joe Ambrosino (Bradeton, Fla.) and Kyle Lippert (Carlsbad, Calif.) led off the inning with back-to-back singles. A failed pickoff and passed ball put the Rams on the scoreboard with their first run. A walk and hit batter set up Ryan Wardwell (Hudson, Mass.), who delivered an RBI single to right, cutting the deficit to 5-2. Jordan Pallazola (Rockport, Mass.) followed with a two-run single up the middle as Framingham State suddenly trailed by just a run. Kyle Pileski (Bristol, Conn.) tied the game with Framingham State's fifth hit of the inning. JP Reiling (Nahant, Mass.) replaced Leavitt and after loading the bases with a walk, gave up a two-run single to Lippert that gave the Rams a 7-5 lead. A balk added another run as Framingham State exited the inning with an 8-5 advantage.
Leavitt lasted 2.1 innings, allowing seven runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts.
Alex Toomey (Beverly, Mass.) earned a run back for Salem State in the bottom of the inning, blasting a home run to deep left, to make the score 8-6.
A double by Pileski and sacrifice by Aaron Williams (Brockton, Mass.) set up Ambrosino with a sacrifice fly in the fifth as the Rams extended their lead to 9-6.
The Vikings threatened in the fifth as three consecutive hits to start the inning off Andrews loaded the bases. Back-to-back fielder's choices by Andrew Deloury (Andover, Mass.) and Jose Cedano (Lawrence, Mass.) knocked in two runs for Salem State who tied the game, 9-9, on a base hit by Colton Fontaine (Newburyport, Mass.).
Richie Sharp (Townsend, Mass.) entered in the top of the sixth for Salem State replacing Reiling, who went 2.2 innings, allowing two runs on two hits with a walk and strikeout.
Two walks to start the inning by Sharp and a double by Wardwell put Framingham State back on top in the sixth. Tim Woods (Wilmington, Mass.) replaced Sharp with one out. Woods balked in the second run of the inning, while Jordan Pallazola (Rockport, Mass.) gave the Rams a 12-9 lead with a sacrifice fly to center.
The Vikings wasted a lead-off double by Kasper, who hit the top of the left center field fence, in the sixth as Andrews retired the next three hitters to keep the margin at three runs.
Woods struck out the side in the seventh to keep the Vikings within striking distance. A single by Deloury and an error put runners on first and third in the bottom of the inning, but a double play set up by an interference call on the runner prevented a bigger inning. Madoc Fisher (Wayne, Mass.) salvaged the frame with an RBI double to draw Salem State to within two runs, 12-10.
Andrews (2-3) pitched out of a two-out jam in the bottom of the eighth, getting a key strike out with runners on the corners following an error and fielder's choice before retiring the side in order in the ninth to preserve the victory. Sharp (6-1) suffered his first loss for the Vikings, allowing three runs on two hits and a walk.
Release courtesy of SSU Sports Information