Teams: Baseball: Schedule & Results

COLLEGE BASEBALL FINAL SCORES
Tufts 6, Middlebury 4  (7 inn.)
Tufts 9, Middlebury 4

At Medford, MA
Friday, April 10, 2009

Game 1 Box Score

Game 2 Box Score

Sophomore SS David Leresche led Tufts offensively during the sweep

MEDFORD -- Freshman Chris DeGoti (Miami, FL) slammed the door on a pair of Tufts baseball wins at Huskins Field on Friday afternoon, picking up a win and a save as the Jumbos (8-13) swept a double-header from NESCAC West foe Middlebury (7-9), 6-4 and 9-4. Sophomore SS David Leresche (St. Louis, MO) reached base eight times in nine appearances on the day, driving in five runs and scoring twice on four hits, one walk and three hit-by-pitches, stealing three bases in the process.

The Jumbos were helped to a 4-0 lead in game one by some shaky Middlebury defense in the second inning. With one out, three Panther errors loaded the bases for senior CF Dave Katzman (North Andover, MA), who cashed in with a two-run double to left center. After a walk to senior 3B Kevin Casey (Milford, MA), freshman 2B Sam Sager (Cranston, RI) brought in a run with a sacrifice fly to center and Leresche knocked in Katzman with a single.

After being staked to the 4-0 lead, sophomore P Pat O'Donnell (Worcester, MA) settled in for Tufts, allowing just four base runners in the first five innings. However, the Panthers rallied with two outs to tie the game in the sixth, as senior 1B Mark Shimrock, junior CF Erich Enns, and senior DH Andrew Matson all had singles before freshman C Zach Roeder tied the game with a two-run double. DeGoti then loaded the bases by allowing a walk and a single, but got a big strikeout to end the threat.

A Panther error helped the Jumbos to two more unearned runs in the bottom of the sixth, as the third baseman booted Sager's two-out groundball to load the bases. Leresche was hit by a pitch to bring in the go-ahead run, and junior 1B Corey Pontes (Milton, MA) drew a walk for an insurance run. DeGoti breezed through the seventh with two K's and a groundout to seal the 6-4 win.

In the back end of the double-dip, the Jumbos scored six times in the first three innings to jump out to a 6-1 lead. In the first, Casey scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch to start the scoring, followed by a Pontes RBI groundout and a sacrifice fly to center by junior C Alex Perry (Danvers, MA).

Following a Middlebury run in the top of the second, Leresche drove in a pair on a single to left in the bottom of the inning, and Sager brought in sophomore LF Ian Goldberg (Lake Forest, IL) with a single down the line in left in the third.

RBI singles by junior DH Nate Bankoff (Lynnfield, MA) and Goldberg made it 8-1 after six, but the Panthers finally got to senior P Mike Stefaniak (Needham, MA) in the seventh. After a throwing error and a single through the left side, 2B Joey Liberator chased Stefaniak with an RBI double. Freshman lefty Kevin Gilchrist (Medford, MA) entered and gave up two more runs before DeGoti made his second appearance, inducing an inning-ending double play from clean-up hitter Shimrock.

The Jumbos added one more run in the bottom of the seventh as DeGoti cruised through two more frames, striking out three in the 9-4 victory. For the day, DeGoti allowed just one run and one walk in four innings, striking out six batters.

Saturday's Tufts-Middlebury doubleheader, originally scheduled to be played in Medford as well, has been moved to Middlebury due to the inclement weather in the day's forecast. The games will start at 1:30 pm.

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