Terni Homers Twice, Leading Baseball Past Cougars
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mitchell | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 15 | 2 |
|
Clark University | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 12 | 0 |
WORCESTER, Mass. – The Mitchell College baseball team ran their winning streak to a season-high three games on Friday afternoon by outlasting Clark University, 12-10, in non-conference action at the Granger Athletic Complex.
Sophomore Chas Terni Jr. (Montville, Conn.) belted two home runs in the win, finishing 3-6 with three RBI and two runs scored. Freshman Ryan Dennis (Enfield, Conn.) also collected three hits, while adding two RBI and scoring a run, while sophomore Michael Ficocelli (North Providence, R.I.) also went deep, producing a 2-4 day at the plate with a homer, two RBI, two walks, and a run scored.
Fresh off a win over nationally ranked Salve Regina, the Mariners wasted no time in their Friday road contest, jumping ahead in the top of the first when junior Kenneth Miller Jr. (New London, Conn.) belted a two-run homer, his first of the season, to left field in the top of the first inning.
The Mariners continued their offensive onslaught with four runs in the second, as Terni Jr. led off the inning with his third home run of the season. Two batters later, junior Adam Vartanian (Cumberland, R.I.) ripped an RBI double down the left field line. Ryan Dennis then drove in a run on a groundout, and Michael Ficocelli hit an RBI single to left field.
Terni Jr. continued his big afternoon with his second long shot of the day in the top of second, and three more runs came around to score that inning to give Mitchell a 6-0 edge. The Mariners added two runs in the third and one more in the fourth, fifth, and sixth to build an 11-1 lead, but Clark countered with six runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it an 11-7 ballgame.
A scoreless seventh followed, before an RBI single by Dennis in the eighth pushed Mitchell up 12-7, but three Clark runs in the bottom of the inning made it a two-run game heading into the ninth.
Junior Thai-ler Sestokas (Danbury, Conn.) got the start for the Mariners and tossed four innings of one run ball. Senior Nicholas Strojny (Woonsocket, R.I.) came on out of the bullpen and earned the win.
Danny Goodman shouldered the loss, surrendering six runs in two innings of work. Billy Sullivan led the Cougars with three hits in six at bats, driving in three and scoring once.
The Mariners (6-12) will look to extend their winning streak to four games when they open Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) on Saturday, March 22, when they host Anna Maria College at 12:00 pm. The Cougars (11-4, 0-0 NEWMAC) return to the diamond for their conference opening game against Emerson College on Tuesday, March 25.
