HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Wheaton College (Mass.) baseball team fell to host Trinity College (Conn.), 16-6, this afternoon at Murren Family Field at DiBenedetto Stadium in Hartford, Conn.
The Lyons dip to 6-4 on the season, while the Bantams improve to 5-7.
Trinity registered a season-high 18 hits, including 17 singles, on the day and did most of its damage in the first two innings with 11 runs combined. Wheaton scored twice in the third and once in the sixth to cut the deficit to 11-3, before the Bantams added four more runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 12-run advantage. Trinity tacked on one more run in the eighth, before the Lyons scored three runs in the ninth.
Eight different players knocked in at least one run for the Bantams.
Senior shortstop Mike Maher (Jefferson, Mass.) led Wheaton at the plate, going 2-4 with a double and a career-high four runs batted in, while junior second baseman Tommy Beauregard (Salem, Mass.) was 2-3 with a double, a walk and two runs scored. Senior right fielder Tommy Ambrosone (Hopkinton, Mass.) also contributed with a double and two runs scored in four at-bats. Sophomore right-handed starting pitcher Ben Oliveira (Somerset, Mass.) suffered the loss to fall to 1-1 on the season after giving up 11 runs on nine hits and three walks to go with a strikeout in one and a third innings of work.
The bottom of Trinity's lineup came through for the Bantams with the 7-9 hitters combining to drive in nine runs. Senior catcher Jack Ryan (Bethesda, Md.) fueled the Trinity bats with a 3-4 effort, while knocking in four runs and scoring three runs. Sophomore right fielder William Sawyer (Easthampton, Mass.) was 4-5 with three RBI and two runs scored from the eight-spot in the order. Sophomore third baseman Tyler Bernstein (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) was one of six Bantam batters to record multiple hits with a 2-3 day that included a triple, a run batted in and two runs scored. Starting lefty Tyler Griffin (Milford, Conn.) allowed three runs on four hits and a pair of walks while striking out seven batters in seven frames to earn the victory and improve to 1-1 on the season.
Trinity's first five hitters all reached base in the bottom of the first, including senior first baseman Sean Meth (Port Washington, N.Y.) and senior designated hitter William Frain (South Hamilton, Mass.), who both knocked in at least one run. Meth's RBI single to right put the Bantams on the board and Frain's two-run single to left gave the home team a three-run margin. Sawyer also singled home a run in the six-run inning for Trinity.
The Bantams picked up where they left off with five runs in the second. Trinity loaded the bases with three straight singles from senior shortstop Jack Matthews (Westport, Conn.), sophomore left fielder Dylan Schnitzer (Huntington, N.Y.) and Meth's second hit in as many innings. Bernstein drew a walk to force in a run and Ryan increased the Bantams' lead to 9-0 with a two-run single to left. Sawyer brought home another run with a run-scoring knock to center field to give the home team a double-digit lead, before Ryan scored the 11th run on the front end of a double steal.
The Lyons cracked the scoring column in the top of the third after loading the bases with one out. Sophomore third baseman Ray Toth (Granby, Mass.) worked a walk to break up a string of seven straight Wheaton batters to be retired to open the game. Beauregard was also awarded first base on a free pass, before senior center fielder AJ Guindon (Coventry, R.I.) reached on an error. Maher delivered a two-out, two-run single to left to bring in Wheatons' first two runs of the afternoon.
The Lyons' pitching staff kept Trinity off the board, while the offense added another run in the top of the sixth to cut the deficit to 11-3. Ambrosone opened the frame by getting hit by a pitch and later came around to score on an RBI single to left field off the bat of junior designated hitter Anthony Teberio (Andover, Mass.).
The Bantams' bats came alive again in the bottom of the inning to push four more runs across to extend their lead to 15-3. Ryan and Sawyer each knocked in a run with back-to-back singles, before sophomore center fielder Andrew Thomas Park (Flushing, N.Y.) served a single to center to plate the 14th run of the game for Trinity. First year second baseman Aidan Stern (South Salem, N.Y.) reached on a bunt single with Sawyer scoring on the play. The Bantams tacked on one more run in the eighth to take a 16-3 advantage after Matthews capped the home team's scoring with a run-scoring single to right field.
First year catcher Tyler Bellan (Franklin, Mass.) led off the ninth with a single to left for Wheaton to begin a three-run ninth. Beauregard later followed with a one-out single to set up Ambrosone for a two-run RBI double to right field to make it 15-4. Maher followed Ambrosone's lead and smacked a double of his own to score both runners and pull the Lyons within 16-6.
Wheaton returns to action on Tuesday, March 26 when it heads to Northborough, Mass. to open the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference slate against Worcester Polytechnic Institute at the New England Baseball Complex for a 3:30 p.m. start. Trinity plays again on March 26 with a home date vs. Westfield State University at 3:30 p.m.
