JUMBOS OPEN SEASON WITH 5-0 VICTORY AT LYNCHBURG
COLLEGE BASEBALL FINAL SCORE
Tufts 5 Lynchburg 0
At Lynchburg, VA
Friday, March 18, 2005
LYNCHBURG, Va. -- The Tufts Baseball team opened its 2005 season with an impressive 5-0 victory at Lynchburg College to start the team's spring trip on Friday afternoon. The win was the first shutout by the Jumbos since a 9-0 win over Babson on May 4, 2003.
Sophomore 3B Kyle Backstrom (Worcester, MA) had two hits, including a home run, three runs batted in and two walks to lead the Jumbos. Classmate Ben Simon (Providence, RI) started and went 6.2 innings allowing 10 hits and two walks while striking out six. Lynchburg had runners on base in every inning, but left 13 stranded. They were 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position.
The Jumbos scored single runs in the second and third to get things going. Sophomore CF Chris Decembrele (Walpole, MA) doubled and scored on a single by senior captain Bob Kenny (Milford, MA) in the second. With two outs in the third, Backstrom singled and eventually scored on a Hornet error.
Backstrom then clouted a three-run home run with two outs in the top of the seventh to give Tufts a 5-0 lead. Senior Jeremy Davis (Little Falls, NY) and sophomore Aaron Narva (Albuquerque, NM) combined to pitch 2.1 innings of scoreless relief for Tufts. Lynchburg loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh, but could not push any runs across.
Kenny had three of the 10 Tufts hits in the game, while Decembrele added a pair including a triple. Tufts turned three double plays in the game. Lynchburg LF Joey Arthur went 4 for 5 and SS Shawn Abell was 2 for 4. The Jumbos beat Hornet sophomore Kyle Utz, who went seven innings allowing nine hits and four earned runs.
The Jumbos are off on Saturday and then play at Randolph-Macon College on Sunday.
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