Baseball Takes First Game From Newbury

JAMAICA PLAIN, Mass. - The Mitchell College baseball team won its conference opener against Newbury College on Saturday afternoon by a final of 11-1 in seven innings at English High School.

Mitchell pounded out 12 hits and played an errorless game in the field to improve to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the NECC. Newbury dropped to 6-7 overall and 0-1 in conference play.

Newbury pitcher Travis Wade was sharp in the first inning, striking out the first three Mitchell batters he faced. The Nigthawks then scratched across a run in the second to go up 1-0. Russell DeMatties led off with a double down the right field line, and two batters later Michael Dean followed with a base hit to right-center to plate the run.

Wade was solid for the first three innings of the game. In the top of the third, he got out of a one-out jam thanks to some solid defense behind him. With runners on first and second, Mitchell senior Drew Rossi attempted to score on a single off the bat of classmate Jeff Perillo, but right fielder Matthew Clawson started a clean relay to cut down the run at the plate. Wade then got junior Felix Colarte to fly out to left to end the threat. 

The Mariners got to Wade in the top of the fourth inning, scoring seven runs as they batted around. Colarte highlighted the rally with an inside-the-park grand slam to give Mitchell a six-run lead. Rossi and junior Angel Chacon each also had RBI singles in the frame. 

The Mariners added to their lead with two runs in the fifth and two more in the seventh. Rossi finished with three hits and two RBI on the day while junior John Apostolo went 2-for-2 with a double and RBI at the plate. Apostolo also took the ball on the mound and went the distance, pitching a complete seven innings and allowing just one run on six hits while fanning five in the victory. 

The Mariners and Nighthawks will complete the season series with a doubleheader at Mitchell College on Sunday, March 20. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m.