SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 7, 2020) – The Western New England University baseball team suffered a pair of non-conference losses to Springfield College on Saturday afternoon at Archie Allen Field. The Pride won 5-1 in the opener, and followed that up with a 4-1 win in game two.

Springfield 5, Western New England 1 (7 innings)

Top Performers
Junior Jack Cooney (Pittsfield, Mass.) went 3-3 for the Pride with three runs and one run batted in. Junior Noah Bleakley (Granby, Mass.) allowed three hits and one run with five strikeouts over four innings.

Freshman EJ Dudley (Meriden, Conn.) had one hit with one run while senior Zac Nussbaum (Bridgewater, Mass.) had one hit and one run batted in.

Game Review

The Golden Bears struck first when Nussbaum hit a single to center field that sent Dudley across the plate to give Western New England a 1-0 lead. Springfield tied the game up in the bottom of the second inning when senior Ryan Smith (Millis, Mass.) singled with the bases loaded to send senior Jake Gleason (South Dennis, Mass.) home.

The Pride took the lead in the third inning when Cooney scored on a fielding error. In the fourth inning, Springfield scored twice to take a 4-1 lead. Cooney hit a double to left field that sent freshman Joe Traversa (Pittsfield, Mass.) across the plate. Later in the inning, a fielding error by the Golden Bears sent Cooney home. In the sixth inning, freshman Michael Barrett (Longmeadow, Mass.) hit a single to left field that sent Cooney across the plate for his third of the game.

Springfield 4, Western New England 0 (7 innings)

Top Performers
Sophomore Mitch Wright (Clifton Park, N.Y.) threw seven scoreless innings for the Pride with four strikeouts and only two hits allowed. Barrett had two runs batted in for Springfield.

Freshman Austin Brown (Waterbury, Conn.) had four strikeouts in four innings for the Golden Bears.

Game Review

Springfield opened the scoring in the second game. The Pride scored four runs in the bottom of the third inning. Cooney hit a single that sent junior Conor Santoianni (Stormville, N.Y.) home. Barrett hit a single to right field in the next at-bat that scored both Cooney and Smith to give Springfield a 3-0 lead. Later in the inning, Bleakley doubled to left field that sent Barrett home to give the Pride a 4-0 lead.

Up Next
Western New England (2-3) travels to Northborough, Massachusetts for a doubleheader with Brandeis. Springfield (3-0) hosts Williams on Sunday afternoon.