BOSTON, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts-Boston scored 10 unanswered runs – the only ones scored in the game – in the opener of a Saturday afternoon Little East Conference doubleheader and then scored 12 unanswered in the second contest as they pounded the Keene State College baseball team 10-0 and 18-6 in a pair of run-rule shortened seven inning games at Monan Park in Boston.

Records

• Keene State:  6-18, 2-5 LEC
• UMass-Boston:  18-6, 7-0 LEC

How It Happened – Game One
KSC fell into a 9-0 deficit after two innings, including allowing a seven-run second inning, and never recovered as they dropped the opener 10-0.  The Owls made four errors and were limited to just two hits, one double and one single, while being mowed down by Beacons' starter Alex Amalfi, who walked two and struck out 12 in his six-inning outing where he got tons of run support.  KSC's double in the game came off the bat of Nathaniel Hudson with one out in the first inning, but he was stranded at third, and it was downhill from there for the Owls, who trailed 2-0 after a sloppy bottom half of the inning that featured two miscues and led to two unearned runs.  Keene State did put the first two on in the second when Michael Montembeault was hit by a pitch and Josh Beayon worked a walk, but a sacrifice bunt attempt did not work out – eliminating the lead runner at third – and two strikeouts ended the inning.  The Beacons then hit the ball all over the ballpark in the bottom of half of the second, seeing the first eight men reach as they piled on six runs.  A seventh came across on a sacrifice fly by Gianni Zarrilli, Jr. (the first out) that made it 9-0.  Included in the frame was, remarkably, consecutive triples by Drew Metzdorf and Aidan Blake that made it 8-0.  That came after the Beacons previously had two doubles, one each from Craig Corliss and Ethan Errera that turned a two-run lead into a four-run edge.  Steve Brookwell also had a two-run single to center as the roof caved in on KSC.

Amalfi (6-2) took it from there, as the Owls' only other hit beyond Hudson's first inning double was a Brendan Eaton single with one down in the sixth.  Keene State did walk four times and was hit by pitches twice, but none of those came around to score as the Owls were blanked for the second time this season, both in openers of conference doubleheaders (Rhode Island College).
Brendan Muhs (2-3) got the ball for KSC and took the loss, allowing nine runs (seven earned), seven hits, and three walks in two innings.  Patrick McKeighan allowed one run and one hit while striking out four over the final four frames.

Six of UMass-Boston's eight hits came in the second inning.  Only one player – RJ Mehnert – had multiple hits, which included his first career home run.  Brookwell and Zarrilli each drove in a pair of runs, while Blake was 1-for-2 with an RBI, two runs, and two walks as the Beacons rebounded after losing two of their previous three games for post a blowout win.

How It Happened – Game Two
The second contest of the day got off to a far more promising start, as KSC scored three times in a top of the first that included a career-first home run for Josh Beayon, but the lead was gone by the end of the inning.  UMass-Boston wound up scoring a season-high in runs, surpassing the 15 they scored against Northern Vermont University-Lyndon on March 11.  They also hit by far a season-high five home runs in the game and had six of their 24 long balls on the season in the doubleheader.  The Owls did bounce back from deficits twice, as Eaton's single up the middle in the second plated Wyatt Draft retied the score at four and a pair of runs in the fourth wiped out a 6-4 deficit to make it 6-6.  However, from there, it was all UMB as they poured on eight runs on eight hits – three of them home runs – in a bottom of the fourth inning knockout blow that made it 14-6.  The frame started with Blake going deep to give the Beacons the lead back, and it did not get any better for the Owls from there, as a second home run on the day for Mehnert brought in three and made it 11-6.  Metzdorf added on another later in the inning to complete the scoring avalanche.  The Beacons had six extra-base hits in the inning overall, and their 10 in the game marked a season-high.  UMB's 17 hits overall equaled a previous season-high.

For the Owls, their six-run output was the highest in the series in seven years since a 10-8, 12-inning loss in 2015, but it did not bear any fruit in the results, as they lost by mercy rule against UMass-Boston for the first two times in the history of the 57-game series.

After Beayon's two-run blast in the first that he put over the left-center field fence made it 3-0, KSC had an opportunity to build on their lead when a struggling Dillon Ryan walked two and hit another to load the bases, but a strikeout ended the inning.  The Owls walked the leadoff batter in the first, but otherwise got the first two outs and were moving in the direction of a shutdown inning.  The third was elusive, though, as a walk and back-to-back home runs rapidly gave UMass-Boston a 4-3 lead, and they never trailed again.  KSC did tie it in the second, but stranded two more (five over the first two frames) and lined into a double play for the second time in three days.  It was still a 6-6 game in the fourth until the Beacons' second inning of seven or more runs on the day and sixth multi-run frame overall.

Gregory Esposito (1-1) took the loss for the Owls, allowing seven earned runs in two innings.  Will Dolaher got the start and pitched the first inning.

Ryan allowed five runs (four earned) and five hits while walking four and striking out five in three-plus innings.  Brendan Ferrari (2-0) got the win after shutting down KSC over three innings of work, allowing one unearned run and one hit while whiffing four.

Around the Horn

• Daft's 2-for-3 effort and three runs scored in the second game maintained his season average at .350 in 20 games (17 starts).
• KSC has dropped 10 of 11 road games this season.
• The Owls lead the all-time series 29-28, but have lost 15 consecutive games to UMass-Boston and have never won at Monan Park (0-8).  The first five defeats at the Beacons' still-new home venue were by one or two runs, but the last three have been by a combined 31 runs.

Up Next

• The schedule does not lighten for Keene State, who visits first place and nationally-ranked No. 2 Eastern Connecticut State University (22-2, 9-0 LEC) on Tuesday, April 19 for a 4:00 p.m. start.  The Warriors have won 10 straight since a 7-3 loss to New England College on March 27.
• UMass-Boston goes to the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (11-13, 2-5 LEC) on the same day at 3:30 p.m.  The Corsairs had lost five straight and nine of 13 before salvaging a conference split with Castleton University on Friday.