| Christopher regitstered his first career double and two runs batted in. (Photo Credit Crystal Ayn Hagberg). |
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (March 26, 2024) – The Stonehill College baseball team dropped its midweek matchup to non-conference opponent Brown University, 14-5, Tuesday afternoon at Murray Stadium in Providence, Rhode Island. With the loss, the Skyhawks fall to 4-13 overall, while the Bears improve to 5-13 on the season.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Redshirt junior Jack Thorbahn and senior Blaine Lidsky led the Skyhawks with two hits.
- Freshman Will Christopher recorded his first career double and two runs batted in in a pinch-hit appearance in the eighth.
- Redshirt sophomore Sam Parks tallied his team-leading fourth stolen base of the season.
- Sophomore Pierce Friedman (0-2) started on the mound and took the loss despite striking out a season-high three batters in 2.2 innings.
- Freshman Brady Deverpaved the way for Brown at the dish, going 4-for-4 with a double, two walks, two runs scored, and four RBI.
- Senior Reece Rappoli also matched his career-high four RBI for the Bears.
- Sophomore Christian Keel (1-0) picked up his first win after striking out a season-high four batters in 4.0 innings of relief.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Brown wasted little time getting the scoring started as just three pitches into the bottom half of the first, sophomore Mika Peterson launched a solo homerun over the right field wall, giving the Bears an early 1-0 lead over the Skyhawks.
With runners on first and third and two outs in the top of the third, a delayed steal attempt by senior Trey Ciulla-Hall allowed postgrad left fielder Conor Kiely to race home and score before the tag was applied to tie the game up at one apiece. However, Brown would respond in the bottom half of the third with three runs off a two-run double by Rappoli and an RBI single by junior catcher Conor Cooke.
The Bears would extend their lead to 7-1 heading into the final three innings of play in the fourth and sixth innings, respectively. A two-run double off the bat of Dever in the fourth would make the score 6-1 in favor of Brown before Cooke drew a bases-loaded walk in the sixth to extend the Bear's advantage to six runs on the board.
In the top of the seventh inning, the Skyhawks would cut the deficit to four runs when a single into left field by Kiely plated junior Taylor Gaspar, who led off the frame with a single through the left side. With two runners on base after the Kiely RBI single, a wild pitch and throwing error by the catcher would allow freshman Ryan LeClair to race home and score Stonehill's third run of the contest.
However, two runs in the bottom of the seventh and five more tacked on in the eighth by the Bears bats would prove too much for the Skyhawks to overcome, eventually falling by a final score of 14-5.
| Thorbahn leads the team and ranks top-10 in the NEC with six doubles on the season. (Photo Credit Crystal Ayn Hagberg). |
INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES
- Thorbahn recorded his team-leading sixth double of the season and now ranks in the top 10 on the NEC leaderboards.
- Kiely drove home his fourth run of the season, while Christopher registered his first two collegiate RBI.
- Parks now ranks seventh in the conference with a .453 on-base percentage.
UP NEXT
Stonehill (4-13, 0-6 NEC) returns to action this weekend for a three-game set against conference opponent Central Connecticut State University.
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