MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME BASEBALL

Second Round – 2016 MASCAC Championships

Friday, May 6, 2016

Commodore Hendy Field, Buzzards Bay, Mass.

FINAL:              MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 3, FITCHBURG STATE 2 (10 INNINGS)

BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. --  Senior Everett Walsh (Marstons Mills, Mass.) scored on a throwing error in the bottom of the 10^th inning to lift second-seeded Massachusetts Maritime to a 3-2 victory over third-seeded Fitchburg State in second round play of the 2016 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Baseball Championships Friday afternoon at Commodore Hendy Field.

The host Buccaneers, who improve to 21-13 overall with their first-ever conference tournament triumph, advance to the league semifinals on Saturday afternoon and will take on top-seeded and host Salem State (21-17-1) at Central Campus Field in Salem, Mass. at 12:30 p.m., as the Vikings posted an identical 3-2 home win over fourth-seeded Westfield State (19-19) in Friday’s other second round match-up.  The visiting Falcons, who fall to 18-19 overall with today’s setback, will square off with the Owls in an elimination round game at Salem State tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m.  A second elimination contest will take place tomorrow afternoon pitting the winner of Saturday’s first elimination game against the loser of the Massachusetts Maritime-Salem State semifinal at 4:30 p.m.

Massachusetts Maritime grabbed a 1-0 second inning lead, as consecutive singles by sophomore Cobie Gerbis (Holmes Beach, Fla.), freshman Kevin Troy (Braintree, Mass.) and senior Greg Downs (Marshfield, Mass.) loaded the bases for freshman Riley Fusaro (Nantucket, Mass.), who plated Gerbis with a fielder’s choice groundout.  The hosts extended that advantage to 2-0 in the fifth when sophomore Connor Kennedy (West Barnstable, Mass.) blooped a lead-off single to left, advanced to second on Walsh’s sacrifice and scored a single to left center by junior Jake Petruzzelli (Abington, Mass.).

That margin held up until the top of the eighth, as Buccaneer senior lefthander Kevin Kwedor (Marshfield, Mass.) retired the first 11 batters he faced and had allowed just two sixth inning singles before Fitchburg State evened matters with a two-out rally.  Kwedor issued back-to-back walks to junior Sam Brown (Nepean, Ont.) and sophomore Drew Mazzeo (Leicester, Mass.), and after both runners advanced on a wild pitch, sophomore Andrew Mooney (Framingham, Mass.) grounded a two-run single to left to knot the score at 2-2 and chase Kwedor.  Mooney advanced to second on a throwing error and to third on a wild pitch by senior reliever Kyle Kennedy (Woodbury, Conn.), who ended the threat with a strikeout.

The Falcons had the potential lead run at third base in the top of the ninth, as senior Brendan Cutler (Clinton, Mass.) drew a lead-off walk, advanced to second on a passed ball and to third on a groundout.  Kyle Kennedy induced a comebacker to the mound for the second out and a grounder to first to end the threat, and after both squads were retired in order in their next respective at-bats, Walsh led off the decisive frame for Massachusetts Maritime with a double to left center.  Sophomore Logan Sullo (Acushnet, Mass.), the reigning two-time MASCAC Player of the Year, was walked intentionally to set up Petruzzelli, who grounded a 1-2 pitch to the hole at shortstop for an infield single that was thrown wide of first, allowing Walsh to score the winning run.

Kwedor and Fitchburg State senior Javier Lozada (New Bedford, Mass.) locked up in a pitcher’s duel for the first seven innings of action, as Lozada worked out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth and allowed seven hits overall with striking out seven and throwing 84 of his 136 pitches for strikes.  Kwedor, who over his last two home starts had retired 29 consecutive batters (18 against MCLA on April 18^th and the first 11 today), also took a no-decision in allowing three hits and fanning three in 7 2/3 frames of work.

Petruzzelli, Connor Kennedy and Gerbis each had two hits to pace a nine-hit Buccaneer attack, as Kyle Kennedy struck out a pair over 2 1/3 innings of work to earn his third win in four decisions on the season for Massachusetts Maritime.  Mooney rapped out two of Fitchburg State’s three hits off Kwedor on the afternoon, as junior Andrew Lessard (Peabody, Mass.) allowed the two 10^th inning hits and an unearned run to fall to 1-6 overall on the season for the Falcons. 

BUCCANEER BLOG:  All three meetings between Massachusetts Maritime and Fitchburg State have been decided by one run, as the Buccaneers swept a 3-2, 2-1 doubleheader decision from the Falcons in regular season play back on April 9^th at Riccards Field in Fitchburg...Massachusetts Maritime had dropped in three previous MASCAC playoff outings to Westfield State (2013), Framingham State (2015) and Worcester State (2015)...Kyle Kennedy now has a win and two saves in three appearances against Fitchburg State this season and earned his 13^th career triumph overall in his 60^th career appearance...The Buccaneers split a MASCAC regular season twinbill at Salem State on April 16^th, dropping a 5-3 opening game decision while using a two-hit shutout from junior Daniel Avery (Milford, Mass./Blackstone Valley) to notch a 1-0 nightcap triumph.

2016 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Baseball Championships

THURSDAY, MAY 5^TH – SINGLE ELIMINATION

Game #1:          #4 Westfield State 1, #5 Bridgewater State 0

Game #2:          #3 Fitchburg State 8, #6 Framingham State 5

FRIDAY, MAY 6^TH – SECOND ROUND (DOUBLE ELIMINATION PORTION BEGINS)

Game #3:          #1 Salem State 3, #4 Westfield State 2

Game #4:          #2 Massachusetts Maritime 3, #3 Fitchburg State 2 (10 innings)

SATURDAY, MAY 7^TH – SEMIFINALS (AT SALEM STATE)

Game #5:          #3 Fitchburg State vs. #4 Westfield State                                   9:30 pm

Game #6:          #2 Massachusetts Maritime at #1 Salem State                             12:30 pm

Game #7:          Game #5 Winner vs. Game #6 Loser                                           4:30 pm

SUNDAY, MAY 8^TH – CHAMPIONSHIP (AT SALEM STATE)

Game #8:          Game #6 Winner vs. Game #7 Winner                                         Noon

Game #9:          Game #6 Winner vs. Game #7 Winner (if necessary)                    30 min. afterwards