Teams: Baseball: Schedule & Results

EASTERN CONNECTICUT SQUEEZES PAST JUMBOS, 3-2

COLLEGE BASEBALL FINAL SCORE
Eastern Connecticut 3    Tufts 2

At Medford, MA
Monday, April 30, 2007

Game Box Score

MEDFORD -- Eastern Connecticut scored on a suicide squeeze in the top of the ninth inning and took a 3-2 victory at Tufts University in a non-conference baseball game between two of New England�s top teams at Huskins Field on Monday afternoon.

With the game tied 2-2 in the ninth and one out, Eastern�s Trey Bongiovanni (Meriden, CT) tripled into the wind in center field. With Bongiovanni on third, senior LF Eric O�Toole (Waterbury, CT) fouled his first squeeze attempt, but was perfect on his next to score Bongiovanni.

Eastern closer Jason LaVorgna (North Haven, CT) walked Jumbo RF Steve Ragonese (Upper Saddle River, NJ) to lead off the bottom of the ninth. Ragonese was sacrificed to second, but LaVorgna earned the save with back-to-back strikeouts.

The Warriors, ranked first in New England and #11 in the nation, improved to 27-8 overall with their 14th win in the last 15 games. Tufts (22-9) lost for the first time in seven games.

Starters Carlos Lopez (Brooklyn, NY) for Tufts and Mike Tingley (Rockville, CT) for Eastern were both effective. Tufts led 1-0 after freshman DH Corey Pontes (Milton, MA) dumped an RBI single into left field in the bottom of the third. That�s where it stayed until the top of the sixth when Eastern scored twice. Junior RF Ismael Bolorin (Manchester, CT) led off with a single and advanced to second on a failed pick-off attempt. He then scored on a single by senior CF Randy Re (Danbury, CT). Sophomore DH Shawn Gilblair (Windham, CT) followed with a double that scored Re to give the Warriors a 2-1 edge.

Tufts tied it in the bottom of the inning. Senior catcher Chris Decembrele (Walpole, MA) led off with a walk and eventually scored on a single by sophomore CF Dave Katzman (North Andover, MA). With the bases loaded later in the inning, Eastern got out of the jam with a 1-2-3 double play. The Warriors would end their two-game losing streak in the series against Tufts with their run in the ninth.

Senior Sam Iverson (New Milford, CT) picked up the win in relief with two no-hit innings. Bonigovanni, who entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the seventh, joined Bolorin and Re as Warriors with two hits in the game.

Lopez went the distance for Tufts, giving up eight hits and a walk while striking out seven. He retired 10 Warriors in a row from the second through fifth innings. Pontes was 2 for 4 and freshman 3B Caleb Sims (Burlington, MA) finished 2 for 3.

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