BRISTOL, R.I. (April 16, 2016) - The Western New England University baseball team improved to 6-0 in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) play and extended its winning streak to eight games with a doubleheader sweep of Roger Williams University this afternoon at Paolino Field.
 
The Golden Bears edged the Hawks 2-1 in the opener behind a dominant pitching performance from freshman lefthander Bob Hamel (Southwick, Mass.), and snapped a late tie in game two on senior catcher Matt Calzone's (Middlebury, Conn.) two-out, two-run single in the seventh to claim a 6-4 victory.
 
Western New England (18-4, 6-0 CCC), which went 8-0 during its season-opening trip in Florida, has now matched its longest winning streak of the spring heading into tomorrow's key conference showdown with Endicott. Roger Williams drops to 10-14-1 (0-6 CCC) with the two losses.
 
Western New England 2, Roger Williams 1
Hamel was the story in today's opener, as the rookie southpaw carried a no-hitter into the bottom of the seventh inning and retired the first two batters he faced in the frame before surrendering a solo home run to Roger Williams junior Bryan Terzian (Westport, Conn.). Hamel, who is now tied with Gordon's Matt Amore for the CCC lead with five wins (5-0) and ranks second in the league behind teammate Tom Mahoney with a 1.60 earned run average, gave up just that one hit and struck out three batters in his complete game effort.
 
Seniors Kevin Marciano (Pepperell, Mass.) and Eduardo Colmenares (Caracas, Venezuela) provided the offense for Western New England, as Marciano recorded a two-out RBI single in the top of the third and Colmenares blasted a solo home run in the fifth.
 
Senior righthander Troy DeLeon (East Hampton, Conn.) got the start for Roger Williams and struck out seven batters over six innings of work, while allowing two runs on four hits.
 
Western New England 6, Roger Williams 4
The Golden Bears led 4-0 after Calzone recorded an RBI single in the top of the sixth, but Roger Williams rallied to tie the score with four runs in the bottom half of the inning. Calzone came through again in the seventh, delivering a clutch, two-out, two-run single that proved to be the difference in the game.
 
Junior righthander Andrew Mulvey (Bristol, R.I.) got the start for Western New England and lasted 5.1 innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits while striking out four batters and walking one. Senior Matt Fedor (Monroe, Conn.) recorded the final five outs for the Golden Bears, improving to 2-0 this spring with the win.
 
Calzone fueled the offense with two hits and three RBI, while senior outfielder Doug Milne (Nesconset, N.Y.) added two hits and two RBI. Junior Daniel Morin (Salem, N.H.) and Marciano also posted multi-hit efforts as the Golden Bears outhit the Hawks 11-6.
 
Colmenares staked Western New England to a 1-0 lead in the third inning with an RBI single to center field, and Milne followed with an RBI groundout. Milne drove in his second run of the contest in the fifth, and Calzone gave the Golden Bears a 4-0 advantage in the sixth.
 
Roger Williams would rally to tie the score in the bottom of the inning, however. Sophomore Sean Gaffney (Simsbury, Conn.) got it started with a triple to center field, before coming in to score on a wild pitch. After the next two batters reached with a single and a walk, the home team benefitted from a Western New England error, which allowed a run to score. The Hawks' deficit was cut to one after senior Jamie Timothy (Cohasset, Mass.) scored on a wild pitch, and classmate Shawn Cariglio (Milford, Conn.) drove in the game-tying run with a single to third base.
 
The Golden Bears wasted no time in taking the lead right back, as they scored twice in the top of the seventh. After the first three batters in the inning reached base, Roger Williams nearly escaped from the jam as freshman Ben LaCroix (Branford, Conn.) struck out and Colmenares was thrown out at home attempting to score on a fielder's choice.
 
Calzone made sure Western New England capitalized on the opportunity, however, as his clutch single plated Morin and Milne, securing the sweep over Roger Williams.  

The Golden Bears host Endicott tomorrow in a battle of CCC unbeatens. First pitch for the doubleheader is scheduled for noon at Trelease Park.