Box Score WORCESTER, Mass. – University of Massachusetts Dartmouth junior Aaron Chouinard (Swansea, Mass.) threw eight strong innings and senior Cory DeMedeiros (Fall River, Mass.) went 4-for-5 to power the Corsairs to a 9-2 victory over Worcester State University this afternoon.
The win was the second straight for UMass Dartmouth, improving its overall record to 7-5. The Corsairs also defeated the Lancers 8-3 in the season-opener on March 10.
Chouinard allowed one earned run on two hits, while issuing a pair of walks to earn his first victory of the season. The junior southpaw struck out a season-high seven batters on 96 total pitches in his longest outing of the campaign. Chouinard gave up two runs in the fourth, but finished strong by retiring the final 13 batters he faced in order.
DeMedeiros recorded a season-high four hits, including three doubles, and a RBI to lead UMass Dartmouth's 12-hit attack. Sophomore Taylor Cacciola (West Greenwich, R.I.) was 2-for-3 with a run-producing double, while senior Alex Newton (Saco, Maine) also registered a pair of hits.
The Corsairs raced out to an early advantage, scoring three times in the top of the first. DeMedeiros ripped a ground-rule double to centerfield to crack the scoring column, while senior Alberto Vasquez drove in a run with a single through the left side of the infield. Cacciola capped the three-run inning with a double to centerfield, scoring Vazquez from second.
Trailing 4-0, the Lancers were temporarily able to solve Chouinard as they pushed across a pair of runs in the bottom half of the fourth. Senior David Ruggiero (Peabody, Mass.) singled through the right side, while classmate Cody Osburn (Sacramento, Calif.) doubled to centerfield, scoring Ruggiero on an errant throw from the outfield. Worcester State recorded its final run of the afternoon on a sacrifice fly.
The Corsairs responded in the top of the sixth, when senior Ben Monteiro (Swansea, Mass.) lifted his first home run of the season down the right field line. The visitors regained their four-run advantage later in the frame on a passed ball.
UMass Dartmouth added insurance runs in the seventh and eighth to close out the scoring. Junior Matt Russell (Townsend, Mass.) worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth to help the Corsairs set down 16 consecutive Lancers.
UMass Dartmouth will return to action at 12 p.m. on April 4, when the Corsairs host Little East Conference rival Keene State College.
