WORCESTER, Mass. – Sophomore Phil Nichols pitched five solid innings while Evan Cali, Jonathan Chatfield, and Hamilton Barnes all had two-hit games as the Keene State College baseball team snapped a three-game slide with a 5-2 victory over Clark University in the opener of a doubleheader Friday afternoon at Granger Field.  The Owls were held hitless until the seventh of the second game and fell 11-1.

Records

• Keene State:  5-8
• Clark:  7-6

How It Happened – Game One
KSC took the lead in the second and added one in the fourth and two in the fifth to make it 4-0, and staved off the Cougars from there as relievers Patrick McKeighan and Shea Zina allowed just one hit in the final two innings after Nichols was lifted in the sixth after Clark got on the board.  The Cougars opened that inning with three consecutive hits (two doubles) to slice their deficit in half, but McKeighan set down the next three batters in order to prevent the inning from snowballing, and then Zina had an impressive seventh by striking out the first two batters (one looking and one swinging) before getting a grounder to short to end the game.

Beyond the arms, the Owls also had a solid game at the plate, with Chatfield doubling and tripling in a 2-for-3 effort.  Cali was 2-for-3 and drove in a pair, while Josh Beayon singled, drove in a run, walked three times, and scored once.  Hamilton Barnes finished with another two-hit game (2-4) that included a double.  Nathaniel Hudson and Mark Barrett also added a pair of RBI singles as KSC outhit Clark 10-8 and struck out only twice at the plate.

"In game one we executed exactly what we had worked on in practice this week," said Keene State head coach Justin Blood.  "We did a good job executing offensively and got some big hits when we needed them.  Phil, Pat, and Shea did a great job on the mound."

After Nichols worked out of two-out trouble in the first when the Cougars put a pair in scoring position, the Owls took the lead in the top of the second when Beayon walked and Hudson reached on an error.  Both were bunted into scoring position, and then Cali lined out to center to plate the first run to make it 1-0.

Clark was not without traffic on the bases, as Andrea Casabianca started their half of the second with a double, but he could only get as far as third on a two-out wild pitch that again put a pair in scoring position, but Nichols got Samuel Farrell to fly to left to end the inning.  A leadoff single in the third was nullified by the Owl sophomore when he struck out Ryan Caulfield and then got Brayden Hollinrake to bounce into a 5-4-3 double play.

Keene State tacked on important runs over then next two innings, including a two-out tally in the fourth when McCue reached on an error and was followed by base hits from Cali and Barrett.  In a 2-0 game in the fifth, Chatfield doubled with two down and moved to third on a passed ball.  Beayon then took a free pass ahead of Hudson's single down the left field line that made it 3-0.  Cali pulled a single to right with two down to plate a fourth run.

Nichols (2-1) notched an important shutdown inning in the fifth, getting three flyouts, and overall allowed seven hits and two runs in five solid innings.  He walked one and struck out one.

Benjamin Spencer (2-2) got the start for Clark and was tagged with the loss, allowing seven hits and four runs (two earned) in 4.2 innings.  He walked three and fanned one.
Anthony Keefe (2-4), Hollinrake (2-3, 2B, RBI, R), and Casabianca (2-3) all had multi-hit games to lead the Cougars, who fell to 1-4 at home and could not build on a walk-off win over Nichols College the previous day.

How It Happened – Game Two
The story of the second contest was Maxwell Gitlin on the mound for Clark, who held the Owls hitless and without a baserunner until there was one out in the seventh, and his team provided him ample run support along the way, scoring eight runs over the first four innings to turn the game into a runaway.

KSC and starter Brendan Muhs was in quick trouble in the first, as Farrell doubled to lead off and Keefe followed with a run-scoring single as it was 1-0 after two batters.  A wild pitch, a ground out, and a sacrifice fly brought in another, and that was just the beginning for Clark, who made it 3-0 in the second on a two-out RBI single from Farrell.  Gitlin struck out the side in the top of the third, and then the Cougars blew the game open with four more in their half of the frame including a three-run homer to left from No. 8 hitter CJ Johnson that made it 7-0, the first long ball KSC has surrendered this year.  Caulfield's base hit up the middle in the fourth brought in Farrell for an 8-0 Clark lead as they scored in each of the first four innings.

Gitlin (3-0) was not threatened in any capacity by the Owls until the seventh when Hamilton Barnes broke up the perfect game bid with a one out single up the middle on a 1-2 count.  Eaton followed with a walk and Chatfield an infield single as KSC loaded the bases.  A wild pitch spoiled the shutout as well, but there was no Owl rally coming, as Gitlin froze the last two batters of the game and finished with nine strikeouts overall against just the one free pass.  He allowed two hits and one run in his complete game effort and lowered his season ERA to 1.26.  Clark is 4-1 in games in which he pitches.

For the Owls, Muhs (0-4) allowed seven runs and seven hits in three innings while walking two and striking out two.

"In game two we didn't get to the edges of the plate enough on the mound and they made us pay.  Their lefty (Gitlin) was good, commanded (the strike zone), and worked with good pace while having good stuff," said Blood.

KSC was bidding for their first twinbill sweep of the year, but instead gave up double-digit runs for the third time in the last five games and fourth in the past seven after not doing so previously.

"We're going to keep getting better…we just need to be open to making adjustments and work to minimize our deficiencies," added the second-year Owl head coach.

"We have been pretty solid defensively and some guys have already shown some growth with their approach at the plate.  We're throwing strikes on the mound but need to be able to make better pitches with two strikes and get to the edges of the zone more often."

Barnes finished 3-for-6 in the doubleheader and is hitting a team-best .310 on the season.

"Ham gives himself a chance every at bat because he uses the whole field and takes what he is given," said Blood.

Farrell had a four-hit game (4-4, 2B, RBI, 3 R) to pace the Cougars' offense in the second game.  Caulfield was 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Around the Horn

• KSC is 4-2 when scoring four runs or more and 1-6 when scoring fewer than that number.
• The team's, much like they split today, have split eight all-time meetings.  Today's matchups were the first between the teams in three years.

Up Next

• Keene State travels to Massachusetts again on Sunday (March 26), this time Libby Field in Weymouth, to take on Eastern Nazarene College (14-3) for what is now a doubleheader that begins at 1:00 p.m.
• Clark takes on city rival Worcester State University (4-8) on the same day at home for a single game that begins at noon.