Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 GORHAM, Maine – Sophomore
Josh Beayon allowed three runs over seven innings while striking out six and the Keene State College baseball team held a 4-3 lead in the eighth inning of the opener of a Little East Conference doubleheader at 21st-ranked University of Southern Maine Sunday afternoon at Ed Flaherty Field. However, the Huskies plated three runs in the eighth to scrap out a 6-4 win in that contest and then scored nine runs spanning the fourth and fifth innings of the second game, eventually winning 10-5 as KSC dropped both and have now lost seven in a row.
Records
- Keene State: 2-11, 1-6 LEC
- Southern Maine: 14-6, 6-3 LEC
How It Happened – Game One
KSC jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the third and then answered after USM tied the game by scoring a run in the top of the eighth on hot-hitting
Brendan Eaton's single to go in front 4-3 - putting Beayon in line for a possible win – but
Ryan Sliwinski put the first two runners on in the bottom half of the inning as the Huskies rallied. Cam Seymour led off the deciding frame with his third double of the game, and then the next batter Andrew Hillier was hit with a pitch to put two on. Both advanced on a balk, and that proved to be costly, as Jonathan Wilson's fly ball to center plated a run and put the go-ahead tally at third, which scored when Tom Vesosky followed with a single through the left side for a 5-4 Southern Maine lead. The Huskies added an insurance run with Jason Komulainen's two-out RBI single to center and that would prove to be enough.
Neither team had many chances early, but those picked up as the game went on, including a couple of big ones for the Owls. Although Keene State did go ahead 4-3 in the eighth on Eaton's base hit, they let a key chance to tack on more runs slip away and it turned out to bite them. Beayon greeted reliever Bryce Afthim (5-0) with a single, adding to his three-hit (and two RBI) game at the plate to go along with is pitching, and then he and Eaton both moved into scoring position after Afthim uncorked a wild pitch to put runners at second and third with one out. However, the next two batters struck out and KSC had to settle for just the one run. Strikeouts were a major problem in the game for the Owls, who were sent down by way of the K 16 times. Southern Maine starter Ben Lambert whiffed 11 in 7.1 innings, but did allow four runs and left trailing.
Down 6-4, Keene State generated another potential rally in the ninth against a pair of USM pitchers, with
Mike Collins singling off Afthim to start the inning before
Trent Mayer was plunked by Seymour as the Owls put the tying run on base. They were unable to advance any further though, as despite the top of the order coming up, both struck out swinging as KSC fell 6-4.
Afthim wound up getting the win, allowing two hits while striking out three after entering the eighth. Sliwinski (0-2) took the loss after giving up three in the bottom of that inning.
Beayon was making his first career start and pitching for just the second time this year. He struck out four in two scoreless innings at Plymouth State on April 9.
How It Happened – Game Two
Keene State struck first with a run in the opening frame of the nightcap and then went up 2-0 after
Joe Barter's fourth inning double, but Southern Maine scored nine of their 10 runs in the fourth and fifth innings to charge in front 9-2 and that would be enough. The Owls, who did themselves no favors on defense by making four errors which led to three unearned runs, clawed within 9-5 with three runs in the seventh while still having two on, but Colton Lawrence fanned Eaton to keep the score there. Lawrence issued two free passes in the eighth with a five-run lead, but the runners could get no further and KSC went down 1-2-3 in the ninth.
Owl starter
Isaac Keehn dealt with traffic on the bases in the early going, but was effective in stranding the runners – leaving two on the first and third frames – and did strike out two looking in a quick second. The trouble began in the fourth, and so did the miscues, as Andrew Pike's leadoff single was followed by an error on what would have been a sacrifice bunt. Pike moved to third on a wild pitch before scoring on an error to make it 2-1, and USM would jump in front on Seymour's two-run poke to left later in the inning. Both of those runs were also unearned.
The Huskies scored six more times in the fifth to blow the game open, and that proved to be important later on. Keehn issued a pair of walks surrounding a triple and a sac fly to make it 5-2 before being lifted, and reliever
Greg Poggioli could not slow things down from there. Sam Troiano doubled home a run, Andrew Olszak followed with a run-scoring single, and Seymour then cracked a two-run homer, suddenly ballooning the score to 9-2 in the blink of an eye.
Will Dolaher and
Andrew Corley allowed only one run in three innings after that, but the damage had been done and the Owls could not find enough key hits to get back in the game despite the seventh inning uprising.
Keehn (2-1) took the loss after allowing three runs, four hits and five walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out four. USM starter Gage Feeney (2-2) allowed two runs and struck out three in five innings while picking up the win.
Around the Horn
Up Next
- Keene State returns home to take on the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (4-9, 3-5 LEC) this Wednesday (April 21) for a conference game at 3:30 p.m.
- Southern Maine welcomes Plymouth State University (5-6, 1-5 LEC) on the same day for two (one an LEC contest) starting at 3:00 p.m.
