MANSFIELD, Conn. 5/13/11 – A day that began with such hope turned into a night of disappointment for Keene State College at the Little East Conference baseball tournament at the Mansfield Outdoor Complex on Friday.
Winners of its first two games in the tournament, Keene State suffered a tough 3-2 loss to sixth seed Rhode Island College and a 15-8 setback later in the day to top-seed Eastern Conn. State to be eliminated from tournament play. "We let a golden opportunity slip away," said a disappointed KSC Coach Ken Howe following the second game. "We made some errors that cost us in the first game and in the second game our pitchers couldn't put a zero on the board. Every time we scored, we turned around and give up runs."
"I'm holding out hope for an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament, but this could be the last time this group of seniors walks off the field," he said.
Senior righfielder Jim Schult drove in seven runs for the second time this year – plating six with two home runs – to spark top- Eastern Connecticut State University the second game victory.
With its third straight win after a tournament-opening loss to sixth-seeded Rhode Island College (20-18), Eastern advances to the championship round for the eighth time in the 15-year history of the championship. The Warriors will face RIC Saturday, with the Anchormen getting two tries to record one win and capture its second LEC title – first since 2005. The teams will meet at noon Saturday, with a second game scheduled for 3:30 p.m., if needed.
Coming off a 3-2 loss to Rhode Island College earlier Friday in the finals of the winners' bracket, Keene (29-14) scored three times in the top of the first on back-to-back home runs, but Eastern answered with three runs in its half of the inning. Trailing 6-5, the Warriors erupted for five runs in the bottom of the sixth to move out to a 10-6 lead, and later tacked on four in the bottom of the eighth to seal its sixth win over Keene in the last eight meetings between the teams in the tournament.
Schult, who knocked in two runs in Eastern's 6-5 elimination win over fifth-seeded University of Southern Maine earlier Friday, hit a two-run home run in the first, plated another with a ground ball in the second, singled in the fourth, socked a grand slam in the five-run sixth, and was hit by a pitch and scored in the eighth. He has 12 RBI in four tournament games. In a regular-season win over Wesleyan, Schult also drove in seven runs – three shy of the Eastern game record.
Eastern sophomore righty Matt Purnell pitched 5 2/3 solid innings in relief of junior righty starter Mitch Furber, who was lifted after back-to-back home runs in the first by junior shortstop Juan Bisono (New Britain, CT) and senior rightfielder Bobby Doyon (Keene, NH) . Purnell worked into the sixth and left on the short end of a 6-5 score after surrendering a two-run home run by junior centerfielder and No. 9 hitter Kyle Morrill (Auburn, NH).
Senior third baseman Tyler Turgeon and freshman second baseman Mitch Plourde matched Schult with three hits each. Turgeon scored two runs and Plourde drove in three with a double and two-run single.
In his fifth career appearance, freshman righty Matt Schiaffino was credited with his first career win after getting a strikeout to end Keene's two-run sixth. After earning a relief win against Southern Maine earlier Friday, junior righty Evan Chamberlain ained his third save with three scoreless innings of one-hit relief.
The top four hitters in Keene's lineup – sophomore DH Greg Bates (Salem, NH), Bisono, Doyon and senior catcher Tyler DiPrato (Suffield, CT) – combined for ten hits, five runs and four runs. With his three hits in the game, DiPrato sets a KSC record for hits in a season (77), surpassing the mark of 74 set by Jeremy Schilling in 2006.
Senior Ed Lacourse (Manchester, N.H.) took the loss for the Owls.
