NORTON, MA- Sophomore Nolan Corr (Somersworth, NH/Saint
Thomas Aquinas) tied a Wheaton College baseball record
with his eighth win of the season, spinning a complete-game shutout
during a rain-shortened, 12-0 victory in six innings over Rhode
Island College on Tuesday in Sidell Stadium.
The Lyons, who are ranked 18th nationally by D3baseball.com,
improved to 25-7 behind their ninth straight win, moving to 11-1
all time against the Anchormen. The visitors fell to 17-13, as the
contest marked just the fifth time this season that Rhode Island
College played in a game decided by more than six runs.
Corr became the seventh Wheaton pitcher to notch eight
victories, as he has compiled that total in as many starts, and
matched another mark with his second shutout. He struck out one,
did not yield a walk and surrendered just six hits. After entering
the game with the second-lowest earned run average in Division III,
he trimmed the figure to 0.89.
The Lyons picked up all 12 of their runs and each of their 17
hits by the fourth inning, as sophomore Dan Haugh (Andover,
MA/Saint John's Prep) led the charge by going 3-for-4 with
two runs and two RBI. Senior Paul Malaguti (Andover,
MA/Andover) and freshmen Eric Jensen (Gorham,
NH/Gorham) and Sean Ryan (Norton,
MA/Norton) each provided two hits while scoring twice, as
Ryan homered, and junior Sean Munley (Trenton, NJ/The Hun
School of Princeton) was 2-for-3 with two RBI. Senior
Jeff Lieneck (Foxboro, MA/Xaverian Brothers) and
sophomore Hal Landers (Salem, NH/Salem) add a pair
of hits apiece.
In his first start of the year, senior Bobby Venditto
(Cranston, RI/Bishop Hendricken) took the loss, allowing
five runs on eight hits in two innings with three strikeouts. All
12 of Wheaton's runs were earned. Six different Anchormen had one
hit apiece, with senior Jared Rossi (Johnston, RI/New
England Christian Academy) picking up a double.
RIC put at least one runner on base in every inning, but Corr's
defense twirled double plays in each of the opening three frames,
with twin killings ending the second and third innings.
Malaguti's first-inning sac fly gave the Lyons the lead for
good, as Wheaton plated three runs on five hits. Haugh legged out
an RBI triple, and Munley poked a run-scoring double. Ryan swatted
a solo home run with two down in the second before Haugh provided
another RBI on a base knock, and Jensen and Landers drove in runs
thanks to third-inning hits.
Wheaton tacked on five runs on six hits in the fourth, as
Lieneck, Munley and junior Eric Laliberte (Nashua,
NH/Bishop Guertin) picked up RBI singles and senior
Jason Clucas (Peabody, MA/Saint John's Prep)
drilled a run-scoring double.
The Lyons host the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth on
Thursday at 3:30 p.m.
