Teams: Baseball: Schedule & Results

JUMBOS ELIMINATE HOST BOWDOIN FROM NESCAC TOURNAMENT, ADVANCE TO FINAL

COLLEGE BASEBALL FINAL SCORE
NESCAC Tournament
Tufts 6    Bowdoin 2

At Brunswick, ME
Sunday, May 14, 2006

Game Box Score

BRUNSWICK, Me. -- Tufts University starting pitcher Zak Smotherman (Westborough, MA) took a no-hitter into the ninth inning of a 6-2 victory over Bowdoin College in Game Five of the NESCAC Baseball Championship on Sunday. The victory lifts the Jumbos (24-13) into the Game Six of the NESCAC Championship against Middlebury on Sunday at noon.

The Polar Bears end their run in the NESCAC Tournament with a 1-2 mark and drop to 28-8-1 overall. Bowdoin will hope for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament when pairings are announced on Sunday night.

Smotherman mowed down the Polar Bears for eight innings, until a bunt single by Jared Lemieux in the ninth frame broke-up the no-hitter. Bowdoin managed to chase Smotherman from the game in that inning, but it was too little, too late as the senior southpaw stymied the Polar Bears for the majority of the contest.

Tufts scored a single run in each of the third, fourth and sixth innings to take a 3-0 edge. Brian Casey (Milford, MA) lifted a sacrifice fly to left that scored Chris Decembrele (Walpole, MA) in the third frame, while Nick Curato (Cumberland, ME) laced an RBI single in the fourth frame that scored Bryan McDavitt (Holden, MA). Decembrele reached home on a fielder's choice in the sixth inning to make it 3-0 Jumbos.

Tufts put the game out of reach with a three-run seventh inning, sparked by a Jim O'Leary (North Easton, MA) RBI single that scored Greg Chertok (New City, NY). A sac-fly by Brian McDonough (Holden, MA) brought home Brian Casey to push the lead to 5-0 before Kyle Backstrom (Worcester, MA) plated O'Leary with a run-scoring single.

Bowdoin scored twice in the ninth, on a Joe Berte single to right and scored on an error later in the inning. Pat Driscoll took the loss for Bowdoin, tossing five innings, scattering six hits and allowing two earned runs.

Chertok, O'Leary and Backstrom had two hits apiece to lead Tufts. Bowdoin's Jon Lawrie reached base twice - both on walks - and scored a run for the Polar Bears.

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