Western New England University

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (April 25, 2026) – The Western New England baseball team saw game one starter Tanner Wall and game two starter Colby DiMenna go the distance on Saturday afternoon in Conference of New England action as the Golden Bears' offense came alive to earn a 13-0 victory (7 innings) and 11-1 win (8 innings) from Trelease Park. 

Records:

• Western New England: 17-18, 9-6 CNE
• Gordon College: 13-21, 5-10 CNE

How it Happened (Game 1):

First Inning:

• After an efficient 11-pitch inning to begin the top of the first from Tanner Wall, the Golden Bears picked up two runs in the bottom of the inning, collecting three straight hits to get ahead early. Ryan Montini started the hit parade with a double to right field, while Leo Paragarino singled through the right side of the diamond and reached second on an attempted out at home, though unsuccessful, giving WNE a 1-0 lead. One pitch later, Tyler Kornacki ripped an RBI double out to left field, giving the Golden Bears the opening 2-0 lead. 

Third Inning:

• The Golden Bears blew the game open in the bottom of the third inning, scoring five times to take a 7-0 lead. Western New England batted around in the frame, seeing Leo Paragarino reach on an error, followed by singles from both Tyler Kornacki and Corey Kilroy to load the bases. Connor Cowern stayed hot with a two-RBI double to left field, followed by an RBI groundout from Antonio Galizia, and a single to right field to score Cowern from Andrew Florek, as WNE extended the lead to six. One final run in the frame came from a sacrifice fly from Ryan Montini, as all nine batters in the WNE order stepped up to the plate in the inning, scoring five runs on six hits to take the seven-run lead. 

Fourth Inning:

• With Wall cruising through the Gordon lineup, having given up four hits through four innings, Western New England added three more in the bottom of the fourth on one swing of the bat when Connor Cowern launched his third home run of the season, second of the week, giving the Golden Bears a 10-0 lead.

Fifth Inning:

• Gordon threatened in the top of the fifth inning, getting back-to-back singles from James Coats and CJ Masella, but Wall bared down and got a pair of strikeouts and a groundout to end the threat, keeping the Fighting Scots from scoring. 
• Tyler Waterbury led off the bottom of the fifth with his team-leading fifth home run of the season, extending WNE's lead to 11, 11-0. 

Sixth Inning:

• The Golden Bears picked up two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to extend the lead. Connor Cowern opened the frame with a double and came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Andrew Florek. Tyler Waterbury then added his third hit and second RBI of the game with a single to score EJ Quint, who pinch ran in the contest, taking Western New England to a 13-0 lead. 

Seventh Inning:

• Needing just three outs to complete a complete game, Tanner Wall gave up no hits in the final frame to preserve the seven-inning shutout victory, taking the Golden Bears to a 13-0 victory. 

Inside the Lines:

• Tanner Wall tossed his first complete game of the season, giving up just six hits, walking one, and striking out seven in the win, tossing 81 pitches. 
• Connor Cowern led the Western New England offense, going 3-for-4 at the plate, collecting five RBIs, and scoring three runs. The five RBIs from Cowern are tied for the most in a single game by a Golden Bear this season.
• Tyler Waterbury was also 3-for-4, picking up a pair of RBIs and a home run in the win. 
• Ryan Montini also added three hits, collecting one RBI. 
• Western New England pounded out 18 hits in the win, tied for the second most this season. 

How it Happened (Game 2):
First Inning:

• As they did in game one, Western New England opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning in game two, exploding right away for four runs to lead Gordon 4-0. Tyler Waterbury was hit by a pitch to open the game, followed by a fielding error in the outfield by Gordon to put Ryan Montini on second with a pair of runners in scoring position quickly for WNE. Leo Paragarino delivered an RBI single, Tyler Kornacki drove in two with a triple, and Corey Kilroy's RBI groundout brought in another, giving the Golden Bears a four-run lead. 

Second Inning:

• Colby DiMenna spun a double play for the Golden Bears to get out of the top of the second inning, while a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame from Tyler Waterbury scored Jack Gamache, who got on base on a hit and advanced on an error, and gave the Golden Bears a 5-0 lead after two innings. 

Third Inning:

• The runs continued to pile up for the Golden Bears, scoring again in the third inning, adding two more runs to the game two total when Connor Cowern's at-bat produced an error that cost Gordon a pair of runs from Tyler Kornacki and Corey Kilroy, who both walked to open the frame, seeing WNE take a 7-0 lead after the frame. 

Sixth Inning:

• Gordon showed signs of life in the top of the sixth inning, coming away with their first hits and run of the game when Blake King tripled with one out, followed by an infield single by Adam Gracie, putting the Fighting Scots on the scoreboard, trailing 7-1. 
• WNE responded for its first runs since in the bottom of the third, coming up with three runs to take a 10-1 lead. Jack Gamache walked while Tyler Waterbury was hit by a pitch, putting two runners on base. Ryan Montini quickly drove in those two runners with a two-RBI single. Montini came around to score WNE's 10^th run of the game when Corey Kilroy singled in the infield, giving the Golden Bears a 10-1 lead after six innings. 

Eighth Inning:

• Needing one to win the game in the bottom of the eighth, Western New England loaded the bases and saw senior Alex Grenier celebrate Senior Day with a walk-off sacrifice fly to win the game on a ten-run mercy-rule game, giving the Golden Bears an 11-1 victory to wrap up the day with a pair of WNE wins. 

Inside the Lines:

• Both Ryan Montini and Leo Paragarino earned a pair of hits, as WNE was in double figures with ten hits in the win. 
• Montini, Tyler Kornacki, and Corey Kilroy all had two RBIs for the Golden Bears. 
• Colby DiMenna was stellar on the mound, tossing eight innings, giving up just three hits and a run, walking one, and striking out six. 
• No bullpen pitchers were used on Saturday as both Western New England starters went the distance. 
• WNE improves to 33-6 all-time against Gordon and has wins in their last six over the Fighting Scots all-time. 

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears remain home for the final four games of the regular season, hosting the University of Hartford (April 28), Fitchburg State University (April 29), and Roger Williams University (May 2) to round out the regular season.