Junior Chris Hoyt led Stonehill to two more wins at Saint Michael's today, as he went 5-for-9 at the plate and scored six runs. |
Skyhawks have won 11 of their last 12 games
COLCHESTER, Vt. (April 26, 2015) – The Stonehill College baseball team continued to roll offensively, scoring 22 runs on 27 hits this afternoon on its way to two more victories over Saint Michael's College at Doc Jacobs Field. Stonehill earned a 9-1 Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division win in the opener, before posting a 13-3 non-conference victory in game two.
With today's doubleheader sweep, the Skyhawks completed a 4-0 weekend in Vermont, hitting .342 as a team while racking up 38 runs on 52 hits. Stonehill has won 11 of its last 12 games dating back to April 12th.
Junior outfielder Chris Hoyt (Walpole, Massachusetts/Xaverian Brothers) led the way at the plate, going 5-for-9 with a walk, a triple and one RBI while stealing three bases and scoring a team-high six runs. Senior shortstop Dan Fratus (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) went 3-for-7 with two walks, three doubles and six RBI, and classmate Christian Baglini (Milford, Connecitcut/Notre Dame High) recorded two walks, two runs, three singles and three RBI. Sophomore third baseman Steve Lee (Braintree, Massachusetts/Braintree) was 3-for-8 with a double, a triple, one RBI and three runs scored, while senior catcher Eric Schneider (Camarillo, California/Saint Bonaventure) chipped in with four singles and one RBI.
Senior Neal Horan (Mashpee, Massachusetts/BC High) earned the win in the opener, striking out seven and scattering five hits over seven shutout frames to improve to 3-2 this spring. Sophomore Pat Hurley (Roslindale, Massachusetts/Catholic Memorial) followed with five innings of two-run ball in game two, striking out six and allowing six hits for his third victory of the year.
Freshman Aiden Burton (Milford, Connecticut/Notre Dame High) paced the Saint Michael's offense with a 3-for-6 effort at the plate and one RBI. Senior Nicky Elderton (Shelburne, Vermont/Rice Memorial) also recorded three hits and drove in one run, while classmate Michael Dougherty (Albany, New York/Christian Brothers Academy) went 3-for-10 with a double and a run and junior Alex Holt (Framingham, Massachusetts/Marian) added a walk, two singles and one run.
Stonehill 9, Saint Michael's 1
Stonehill posted its second consecutive 9-1 win over the Purple Knights in today's opener, recording 13 hits and benefitting from four Saint Michael's errors.
The Skyhawks jumped ahead in the third inning, scoring one run when junior Brian Hocking (Duxbury, Massachusetts/BC High) reached on a fielding error. Stonehill plated two more runs in the fourth on RBI singles by Hoyt and Baglini, before breaking the game open with five runs on five hits in the sixth inning.
The Skyhawks did all of their damage in the sixth with two outs, as the first two batters of the inning struck out. After the bases were loaded on a pair of singles and a walk, junior Brian Campbell (Franklin, Massachusetts/Mount Saint Charles Academy) drew a free pass to bring in a run. Fratus followed with a three-run double to left center, and Hocking capped the big inning with an RBI single down the left field line.
Senior Neal Horan earned the win in game one after striking out seven over seven shutout frames. |
After Stonehill tacked on another run with the help of an fielding error in the top of the eighth, Saint Michael's got on the board on senior Don McGuirl's (Warwick, Rhode Island/Saint Sebastian's School) RBI single in the bottom half of the inning.
Stonehill 13, Saint Michael's 3
Stonehill followed up its 13-hit, nine-run performance in the opener by plating 13 runs on 14 hits in game two. Hurley improved to 3-0 with the win after allowing two runs in his five innings of work.
The Skyhawks again jumped out to an early lead, scoring one run in the top of the first when Baglini reached on a bunt single and Hoyt crossed the plate with the help of a Saint Michael's error.
The Purple Knights tied the score at one in the third on an RBI single by Elderton, before taking their first lead of the day in the fifth on an RBI groundout by freshman Matt Polletta (Pawling, New York/Pawling).
The one-run advantage would be short lived, however, as Stonehill took a 7-2 lead with six runs in the sixth. Fratus got the rally started with a two-run double to right field, while Hocking and Schneider followed with sacrifice flies. Freshman Joe Klingensmith (Topsfield, Massachusetts/Masconomet) capped the six-run frame with a two-run home run to left center field, the first homer of his collegiate career.
Saint Michael's got one run back in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI groundout by Burton, but Stonehill put the game out of reach with six runs over the next three innings.
Stonehill (27-10-1, 14-6 NE-10) returns home on Tuesday afternoon to host Assumption College in a divisional matchup at Lou Gorman Field. Saint Michael's sees its season come to a close at 10-28 overall and 4-19 in conference play.
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