Baseball Takes Opener Against Southern Vermont

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College baseball team opened New England Collegiate Conference play with a 16-2 victory over Southern Vermont College on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field.

The Mariners fell behind 2-0 in the second inning but ripped off 16 unanswered runs to secure the win. Kyle Hartenstein, James Rangel, Steven Pagan and Jason West all had three hits in the contest as Mitchell finished with 20 as a team.

Mitchell starter Bryton Ferris lasted 7.0 innings and didn't allow an earned run to improve to 3-0. He struck out five and walked one while yielding five hits.

Ryan Cullam led the SVC offense with a 3-for-4 effort out of the leadoff spot. He also drove in a run on the day.

The Mountaineers took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second behind RBI singles by Rob Spatafore and Cullam. However, the Mariners responded with five runs in the home half to pull in front for good. Peter Abate cut the deficit in half with an RBI single, and West followed with a bases-loaded single that scored two and put Mitchell on top 3-2. Eric Marriott then plated a run with an infield single before West scored on a wild pitch to make it 5-2.

Mitchell built the lead by scoring runs in every inning after the third. Garet Griffin drove in four runs during the stretch that included an RBI single in the fourth, a two-run triple in the seventh and a sacrifice fly in the eighth. Rangel also supplied a pair of RBI singles as the Mariners piled up the runs.

SVC starter Rees LeSoine surrendered nine runs (seven earned) on 11 hits over 5.0 innings.

Mitchell (9-1 overall, 1-0 NECC) and Southern Vermont (1-8 overall, 0-1 NECC) will finish their weekend series with a Sunday doubleheader that begins at 1 p.m. at Alumni Field. The Mountaineers will bat as the home team in both contests.