Box Score NEW BEDFORD, Mass. – The top five batters in the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth lineup accounted for 10 of the 12 hits, and freshman Ryan Britton (Milford, N.H.) threw 4 1/3 innings of relief to earn his first collegiate victory as the Corsairs defeated Babson College 7-4 this evening in a NCAA Division III baseball game at Paul Walsh Field.
Senior George Agostini (Rehoboth, Mass.) powered the UMass Dartmouth (12-7) attack with a 3-for-4 showing at the dish with two runs scored and three RBI. Classmate Alex Newton (Saco, Maine) also recorded three hits, while senior Alberto Vasquez (Roxbury, Mass.) added a double and a single. Senior Cory DeMedeiros (Fall River, Mass.) provided a pair of insurance runs on a mammoth two-run homer in the seventh to extend the hosts advantage to 7-3.
Britton entered the scoreless ballgame in the top of the third inning and retired five of the first six batters he faced. The rookie southpaw scattered three unearned runs on five hits, while issuing one walk in his longest appearance of the season. Britton relieved senior Nate Farias (Fall River, Mass.), who was making his first start since April 17, 2012. Farias was effective in his two-inning stint, setting down the first five hitters he faced before giving up back-to-back singles.
Babson pushed across a pair of unearned runs in the top of the fifth inning to take a 2-1 lead, but the Corsairs responded in the bottom half with four runs to seize control of the contest. Freshman Josh O'Neill (Halifax, Mass.) drew a one-out walk and advanced to third on senior Ryan Mederios' (Acushnet, Mass.) double over the right fielder's head. Agostini stung a two-run double inside the left field line to give UMass Dartmouth an advantage it would not relinquish. Vasquez peppered the left field line with a RBI double to drive in Agostini, while Newton capped the frame with a run-producing double down the right field line to increase the hosts' lead to 5-2.
The Beavers scored a run in the seventh, but DeMedeiros deposited his fourth home run of the season over the left field fence to seal the contest.
UMass Dartmouth will return to action at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14, when the Corsairs travel to Little East Conference rival Rhode Island College (12-7, 3-3).
