KEENE, NH- The nationally-ranked Wheaton College baseball team
saw its 12-game winning streak come to an end on Sunday, as Keene
State College rallied for a 7-5 victory at the Owl Athletic
Complex. The Lyons, who sit 18th in the D3baseball.com poll and are
ranked second in New England, slipped to 29-8. The hosts won their
seventh straight and are 23-13-1.
Wheaton sophomore Nolan Corr (Somersworth, NH/Saint
Thomas Aquinas), who was gunning for his program-record
ninth win of the spring, instead suffered his first collegiate
setback, allowing all seven runs on eight hits with three walks and
three strikeouts in 4.2 innings.
Freshman Sean Ryan (Norton, MA/Norton) finished
2-for-4 with two stolen bases, classmate Eric Jensen
(Gorham, NH/Gorham) had two hits and a pair of RBI, and
sophomore Hal Landers (Salem, NH/Salem) added two
hits, including a double.
Junior Peter Burgio (Bolton, CT/Bolton) led
Keene State's offense, going 2-for-4 with two RBI, a double and a
triple, while classmate Bobby Doyon (Keene,
NH/Keene) had two hits and two runs. Sophomore
Jeff Pelkey (Fitzwilliam, NH/Monadnock Regional)
was effective in the victory, allowing four earned runs on nine
hits in 5.1 frames, walking two and fanning three.
Wheaton jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning, as the
first three batters all picked up hits. The Lyons finished with
four hits and a pair of walks in the frame, as Jensen's two-run
single was the big blow. However, the visitors left two on base
before also stranding two in the third, opening the door for Keene
State to rally.
The Owls tallied each of their first four runs with two outs,
plating one in the first inning and three more in the second, as a
Wheaton miscue led to three unearned runs. Burgio's two-RBI triple
in the fifth sparked a three-run inning, and the hosts held a 7-4
advantage.
Lyon senior Paul Malaguti (Andover, MA/Andover)
lofted a sac fly to plate junior Hadi Raad
(Hastings-on-Hudson, NY/Hastings) and bring Wheaton within
two runs the following inning, but the Lyons stranded two more
before leaving the bags loaded in the seventh.
Keene State threatened for more in the home half, placing
runners at second and third with no one out, but freshman
Mike McGinnis (Mashpee, MA/Mashpee) came out of
the bullpen to fan his first batter before inducing a pair of
groundouts, keeping the Owls off the scoreboard and Wheaton in the
game. However, the Lyons went hitless the final two innings.
Wheaton returns to action on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. at Western New
England College, a The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC)
Tournament finalist.
