Box Score WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 24, 2024) – The Western New England baseball team saw a lead right out of the gates in the top of the first inning, though could not hold onto their lead in the seventh inning when the Cardinals of Catholic University scored three times to take a 5-3 victory on day two of the Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational.
Records:
- Western New England: 0-2
- Catholic University: 1-1
How it Happened:
WNE came out of the gates hot, looking for their first win of the season, when
Paul Villecco walked, which would be followed up by a fielder's choice from
John Bova. The third-hole hitter,
Cody Waterbury, collected a single up the middle, while
Sean Jamieson's RBI groundout would give Western New England an early 1-0 lead. Western New England SP
Matt Lauria would take down Catholic in order in the top of the first inning, holding Western New England's lead at one.
Western New England would threaten in the top of the second inning, getting hits from both
Kohtaro Shimada and
Ryan Montini, though the blue and gold would not be able to string anything together with two runners on and one out, leaving the two on base. The Cardinals would come around with their first threat on the WNE defense in the third inning after
Lauria recorded two quick strikeouts. Catholic would see a single and a walk come with two outs in the inning, though the junior starter for the Golden Bears would bear down and toss a strikeout, striking out the side in the inning to keep the hosts off the scoreboard.
Andrew Florek would open the top of the fourth inning with a single up the middle, while
Jack Loftus would deliver an RBI double to right field for Western New England that would plate the WNE first baseman, giving the Golden Bears a 2-0 lead. WNE would continue to push in the inning, though could not add any additional runs, scoring one while grabbing two hits and leaving two runners on base. The Cardinals would come around with their first run in the bottom of the fifth inning to cut the Western New England lead in half, grabbing an RBI double.
The Golden Bears would answer with a sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth inning to get their two-run lead back after
Shimada would single, while Aron Cole would produce the sacrifice fly for the Golden Bears that gave Western New England a 3-1 lead. That two-run lead would not last for a half inning as Catholic would respond with a run on a wild pitch, again cutting Western New England's lead to one run, a 3-2 lead for the visitors.
The Cardinals would come alive in the seventh inning, getting to Western New England first-year
Cam Heeman, who made his debut on Saturday. The Cardinals would grab three hits and three runs in the bottom of the seventh to take their first lead of the game, a 5-3 lead on a two-RBI single up the middle. WNE would come back and look to threaten in the top of the eighth inning, though the two hits they had, coming from
Shimada and
Cole, would go for nothing as WNE would strand the runners on base in the inning. After
Troy Donohue shut down Catholic in the bottom of the eighth, Western New England would get the bases loaded with no outs in the top of the ninth but could not score in the inning, as WNE baseball would fall 5-3.
Inside the Lines:
- WNE catcher Kohtaro Shimada recorded three hits in three plate appearances to lead the Golden Bears.
- Cody Waterbury was the only other Golden Bear to record more than one hit, coming away with two in four plate attempts.
- SP Matt Lauria lasted six innings for WNE, grabbing the no decision, giving up two hits and two runs while walking five and striking out six.
- Cam Heeman made his collegiate debut for Western New England in the loss, while Troy Donohue made his first appearance of the season.
Up Next on the Schedule:
- The Golden Bears will play their final game of the Matt Kurkjian ALS Awareness Invitational, taking on a former member of the CCC, Salve Regina University, on Sunday, February 25 at 11:00 AM.
