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Western New England University

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BSB 3.19.26
2
Coast Guard USCGA 3-6
5
Winner Western New Eng. WNE 6-4
Coast Guard USCGA
3-6
2
Final
5
Western New Eng. WNE
6-4
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Coast Guard USCGA 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 7 4
Western New Eng. WNE 0 2 1 0 2 0 0 0 X 5 8 0

W: Nivison, Greg (1-1) L: Jack Spinnato (0-1) S: DiMenna, Colby (1)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Superb Pitching Gives Golden Bears 5-2 Victory Over Coast Guard In Home Opener

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 19, 2026) – The Western New England baseball team needed just two pitchers, Greg Nivison and Colby DiMenna, to get through a nine-inning victory at Trelease Park on Thursday afternoon, allowing the Golden Bears to secure a 5-2 win over the United States Coast Guard Academy. 

Records:
  • Western New England: 6-4
  • United States Coast Guard Academy: 3-6
How it Happened:

Second Inning:
  • After breezing through the opening inning, WNE starting pitcher Greg Nivison got the first two outs of the top of the second before seeing Anthony Diclemente single to right field, steal a base, and score a run on a single to left field from Mason Phillips, giving Coast Guard a 1-0 lead. 
  • The Golden Bears answered quickly, coming up with two runs in the bottom of the second inning to take their first lead of the afternoon. Connor Cowern opened the inning with a double, while Alex Grenier was hit by a pitch to put a pair of runners on base with no outs. Mark Zigmont used his at-bat effectively, moving both runners over with a sacrifice bunt. Antonio Galizia batted a ball to the Coast Guard pitcher that gave the Bears lefty trouble, allowing all runners to advance a base, putting WNE on the scoreboard.
  • Western New England wasn't done, as Tyler Waterbury picked up a foul out to right field, but plenty deep to score Grenier, giving the Golden Bears a 2-1 lead after two innings of play. 
Third Inning:
  • Nivison gave up a leadoff double to Carson Cho to begin the third, but settled in and struck out back-to-back hitters and got out of the inning unscathed.
  • Corey Kilroy led off the bottom of the third inning with a solo home run for the Golden Bears, giving Western New England a 3-1 lead. 
Fourth Inning:
  • Coast Guard got a run back in the top of the fourth off Nivison, which ended up being the last inning of the afternoon for the junior. Declemente for Coast Guard continued to put up good at-bats, this time singling with a runner on second to score the run, seeing the WNE lead retreat to one, 3-2. 
Fifth Inning:
  • Colby DiMenna needed five pitches to get out of the top of the fifth, which included a strikeout in quick order. 
  • The Golden Bears picked up two runs on two hits while Coast Guard committed an error in the bottom of the fifth inning. Leo Paragarino opened the inning with a single, while Corey Kilroy walked. The pair advanced twice on wild pitches, scoring Paragarino, giving the Golden Bears a 4-2 lead. Alex Grenier earned his first RBI of the game after a fielder's choice from the Coast Guard infield saw Kilroy score, giving the Golden Bears a 5-2 lead at the end of the inning. 
Sixth Inning:
  • DiMenna plunked a pair of Bears to open the sixth inning, but settled down and picked up back-to-back strikeouts and got a groundball out to end the frame. 
Seventh Inning:
  • Western New England threatened in the bottom of the seventh for more after Tyler Kornacki drew a walk and then advanced to third following a failed pickoff attempt, Coast Guard's fifth error of the afternoon, but could not score the runner, keeping the game at 5-2 in favor of the Golden Bears. 
Ninth Inning:
  • Looking to finish off the inning in quick order, DiMenna got a pair of outs in just six pitches, but the next two Coast Guard batters reached, pinch hitter Gus Barrido on a double and Luke Percifield on a walk, sending the game-tying run to the plate, but DiMenna got a ground ball to end the game, giving WNE a 5-2 win on its home field in the home opener. 
Inside the Lines:
  • The Golden Bears needed just two pitchers to carve through the Coast Guard order. Greg Nivison went the first four innings, giving up six hits and two runs, walking one and striking out three. Colby DiMenna went the final five innings on the mound, giving up just a single hit in the ninth, while walking one and striking out four. 
  • The Golden Bears had seven hits in the game, all coming from different players. 
  • Corey Kilroy, Tyler Waterbury, Alex Grenier, and Antonio Galizia recorded RBIs for the Golden Bears in the win. 
  • Coast Guard made four errors defensively and left eight runners on base in the loss. 
  • This is the first win for the Golden Bears in program history over Coast Guard after WNE fell last season on home field in a game that featured 17 runs, 26 hits, and 10 errors. 
Up Next on the Schedule:
  • The Golden Bears return home for a game on Friday, March 20, at 3:00 PM, hosting the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) at Trelease Park.
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