NEEDHAM, Mass. — The number four seed Wheaton College (Mass.) baseball team was defeated, 5-3, by third-seeded Babson College in the Championship Game of the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference Tournament this afternoon at Govoni Field in Needham, Mass. 

The Lyons finish their season with a 24-14 record, while the Beavers improve to 30-11. 

Babson wins the NEWMAC crown for the fifth time and its first title since 2018 when it defeated Wheaton.

The Beavers scored single runs in the fifth and seventh innings to spell the difference in the game. Babson scored the first two runs of the contest in the bottom of the first, before the Lyons cut the margin in half with a run in the second. The Beavers got the run back in the bottom of the frame to take a two-run lead, before Wheaton pulled even with two runs in the third to make it 3-3.

Senior shortstop Mike Maher (Jefferson, Mass.) led the Lyons at the plate with a two-run home run in three at-bats, while first year catcher Tyler Bellan (Franklin, Mass.) was 2-3. Junior first baseman Timmy Wagner (Hingham, Mass.) was 1-3 with a double. Junior reliever Jackson Walsh (Cumberland, R.I.) suffered the loss to drop to 4-1 after giving up a run on two hits in two and a third innings of work.

Senior third baseman Brant Savage (Charlton, Mass.) powered Babson, going 2-3 with two runs batted in, a walk and a big solo homer. Graduate student designated hitter John Nowak (Pelham, N.Y.) was 1-2 with two RBI and senior second baseman Tanner Santos (Bethany, Conn.) was 3-4 with two runs scored. Junior pitcher Matt Milone (Amston, Conn.) earned the victory to up his mark to 1-0 after hurling two innings of one-hit relief to go with a walk and a strikeout. Sophomore reliever Zander Teator (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) picked up his sixth save of the year after tossing two innings of one-hit, one walk shutout ball, including three strikeouts to close out the game.

Wheaton threatened to take its first lead of the day in the fifth, but the Beavers came up with a huge out at the plate to end the inning. Maher drew a two-out walk and Wagner belted a pitch to the base of the fence in right-center field. Maher circled the bases and looked to score from first base, but the relay home from Beaver graduate student center fielder Luke Tanner (Los Angeles, Calif.) to Santos to senior catcher Ike Kiely (Falmouth, Maine) arrived before Maher to end the inning.

Savage continued Babson's momentum when he led off the bottom of the inning with a mammoth long ball over the left field scoreboard to give the Beavers the lead for good at 4-3.

Babson tacked on an insurance run in the seventh to give the higher seed a two run lead. Santos laced a lead-off single up the middle before advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt and taking third on a wild pitch. Nowak lifted a fly ball to shallow center field that drew a strike to the plate from Lyon senior center fielder AJ Guindon (Coventry, R.I.). The throw beat Santos to the plate, but Santos danced around the tag and was able to touch home plate with the fifth run of the contest for the Beavers.

Wheaton looked for a ninth-inning rally to extend the game when Bellan opened the frame with a single to left field, but was eventually stranded on third base before Teator fanned the final Lyon hitter to give the Beavers the title.

Babson's first three batters all reached in the top of the first as part of a two-run frame to open the scoring. Santos reached on an infield single and Tanner walked to set up Savage for an RBI single dumped into left field to drive in Santos with the game's first run. Nowak followed with a sacrifice fly to left and Tanner scampered home to give the Beavers a 2-0 margin.

Wheaton took advantage of an error to get a run back in the second to pull within 2-1. First year left fielder Shawn Cali (East Taunton, Mass.) reached on an infield error and advanced to second on the overthrow, before senior right fielder Tommy Ambrosone (Hopkinton, Mass.) made the miscue hurt with a run-scoring single down the left field line to plate Cali.

Babson restored its two-run lead, taking advantage of a Lyon error in the bottom of the frame. Senior right fielder Luca Rubin (Los Angeles, Calif.) and Santos each singled and Tanner reached on an infield error to bring home Rubin with the third Beaver run.

Wheaton knotted the game at 3-3 with one swing of the bat in the third to keep the drama intact. First year third baseman Casey Wensley (Raynham, Mass.) reached on a fielder's choice and Maher followed with a blast over the right-center fence that landed in the tree branches behind the fence for the senior's third round-tripper of the year and a tie ball game.