Box Score GORHAM, Maine – Senior Nate Farias (Fall River, Mass.) delivered a two-run single into centerfield to snap a 4-all tie in the bottom of the seventh to help the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth baseball team post a 7-4 victory over Eastern Connecticut State University in Game 2 of the 2015 Little East Conference Championship tournament this afternoon at the USM Baseball Stadium.
The second-seeded Corsairs (24-15) advanced into the winner's bracket to face the fourth-seeded University of Massachusetts Boston (23-13) tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 p.m. The fifth-seeded Warriors (19-16) will square off against sixth-seeded Western Connecticut State University in an elimination tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m.
UMass Dartmouth demonstrated its power to build a 3-0 advantage after two full innings. Senior George Agostini (Rehoboth, Mass.) tucked a two-run homer inside the right field foul pole to give the Corsairs an early 2-0 lead. Senior Alex Newton (Saco, Maine) led off the second stanza with a towering home run to right field. Agostini and Newton each recorded their third home runs of the season.
Eastern Connecticut was finally able to solve UMass Dartmouth junior starter Steve Colella (Leominster, Mass.) in the top of the fourth inning. Senior Corey Keane (Tolland, Conn.) ripped his fifth home run of the season over the left field fence to put the visitors on the scoreboard. The Warriors strung together a single and double to put both runners into scoring position. Junior Tim Budd (Cheshire, Conn.) lifted a sacrifice fly to centerfield to trim the deficit to 3-2. Keane finished the contest 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
Budd drew the contest even in the sixth with a two-out double into the left centerfield gap to score senior Joe Perez (North Branford, Conn.) from first. Eastern Connecticut completed the rally in the seventh inning, when Keane and senior Kyle Hart (Guilford, Conn.) registered back-to-back doubles.
Junior Patrick O'Neil (Thomaston, Conn.) settled down after Newton's solo homer, holding UMass Dartmouth hitless and retiring 10 consecutive batters into the bottom of the seventh. The Corsairs were able to work a pair of two-out walks to end O'Neil's outing.
Senior Ryan Medeiros (Acushnet, Mass.) greeted senior reliever Matt D'Orsi (West Hartford, Conn.) with a RBI single into left field to plate pinch runner freshman Andy Gonzalez (Mattapan, Mass.) from second. Farias followed suit with a two-run single to centerfield and scored on a three-base defensive miscue. UMass Dartmouth threatened to add to their advantage as Agostini singled, stole second, and advanced to third on a wild pitch, but was stranded on a line-drive out to left.
Junior Matt Russell (Townsend, Mass.) retired the final six Warriors he faced, including setting the side down in order in the ninth to collect his second save. Sophomore Sean Callahan (Colchester, Vt.) earned his first win of the season (1-2), giving up two hits and a run in the seventh inning.
Colella, making his 10th start of the season, earned a no-decision, working six complete innings. The right-hander from Leominster, Mass. allowed six hits, three runs, and three walks, but matched his season-high with nine strikeouts.
