Baseball Drops Series Finale to Becker

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College baseball team dropped the final game of its weekend series against Becker College by a 7-4 final on Sunday afternoon at Alumni Field.

Becker (10-9 overall, 6-3 NECC) erased an early 2-0 deficit and took the lead behind a four-run fifth inning. Starting pitcher Keon Jenkins gave the Hawks a strong outing, working into the sixth inning while striking out five to improve to 3-1 on the season.

Becker had the game's first chance to score but came up empty in the second inning. Shaun Millerick delivered a pinch-hit single to left with a runner on second base, but senior Tommy Derosier threw a strike to the plate to cut down the runner trying to score. Mitchell (5-10 overall, 4-2 NECC) then got on the board in the third inning on a two-run double by freshman Nick Carlson.

The Hawks got a run back in the fourth on an RBI single by Tom Natoli before pushing across four runs in the fifth to pull in front. Mike Smith provided the big hit in the rally, a bases-loaded single to right field that scored three runs with the help of a Mitchell fielding error.

Mitchell got a run back in the sixth as Jenkins began to tire. The Mariners drew four straight two-out walks to plate the run before Jenkins was pulled from the game. Reliever Trenton Gibson needed only three pitches to record the final out and escaped the jam with the 5-3 lead.

Becker increased the margin to 7-3 in the seventh on a two-run homer by Todd Tompkins, his team-leading second of the season. The lead was more than enough for Gibson, who allowed only one run on three hits over the final 3.1 innings to record the save.

Jenkins allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and struck out and walked five in 5.2 innings of work. Mitchell starter Mike Grofsick threw 4.1 innings and allowed five runs (four earned) on nine hits while striking out one.

Mitchell will next host Daniel Webster College for a nine-inning affair on Friday, April 6 at 3 p.m.