WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Keene State College baseball team scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to surge in front, added seven more in the eighth to break open the first of two Litle East Conference games on Saturday, and then was in command for the rest of the day as they took two from Western Connecticut State University in an 11-4, 6-2 sweep played at the USJ Baseball Field after KSC's home field was unplayable due to the recent wintry weather.

Records

• Keene State:  11-12, 3-1 LEC
• Western Connecticut:  3-12, 0-4 LEC

Postgame Interview (Coach Blood)
Postgame Interview (Jonathan Chatfield)
Postgame Interview (Otis Follet)

How It Happened
It was frequently the bottom of the lineup that helped set the table on this day, and the Owls' big bats at the top of the lineup cashed in, as KSC outscored the Wolves 17-3 over the final 14 innings to run their winning streak to five straight.  Since starting 4-11, the Owls have won seven of their last eight including sweeps on consecutive Saturdays in the Hartford area.  Although KSC probably did not expect to be playing about two hours away, they made themselves at home anyway, getting strong relief work on the mound from Dylan Ellison and David Floyd in the opener before Troy Brennan and George Young shut down WCSU in the second contest.  The pitching effort was in support of a KSC offense that continues to take strides forward.

In the opener, the Owls got a combined 6-for-13 effort and seven RBI from the top three in their order (Tommy Ahlers, Brendan Eaton, and Jonathan Chatfield), but eight KSC bats recorded at least one hit.  Evan McCue finished 3-for-4 with a double, RBI, and three runs while Evan Cali was 2-for-3 and walked out of the No. 8 and No. 9 spots in the order, respectively.

The game flipped in the fifth, as after WestConn moved out to a 3-0 lead against laboring KSC starter Shea Zina (four walks in 2.2 innings), the Owls put up three to take the lead for the first time.  The inning began with McCue and Cali setting the table before Eaton later came through with a two-out, game-tying single.  Chatfield, who returned to the lineup after an injury on Tuesday, followed with a double grounded down the right field line for a 4-3 lead, and the Owls did not look back from there.  KSC broke the game wide open with a seven-run eighth that began with a one out Chatfield double.  Otis Follet, 21 for his last 49, followed with an RBI triple to center that bounced over centerfielder Jayson Hannah's head and Hamilton Barnes then scored Follet with an RBI single to make it 6-3.  Western Connecticut finally pulled Connor Gannon at 107 pitches after Ethan Rainha's single to left, but Max Grewal could not stop the bleeding for the visitors, as McCue lined an RBI hit to right, Cali walked, and Ahlers bounced a ball up the middle for a two-run single to make it 10-3.

Ellison (3-0) got the win, tossing 3.1 scoreless innings and allowing three hits.  Floyd picked up his first save, striking out four and walking one in three innings.
Stanley Roman paced WCSU with a 4-for-5, two RBI effort in the opener, but the Wolves were held without an extra-base hit.  Gannon (1-3) took the loss, allowing 11 hits and eight runs in 7.1 innings.  He struck out eight.

WestConn's offense was quieted in the nightcap as well by Camden Thomas (six strikeouts) and a combined 5.1 one-hit relief innings from Brennan and George Young.
Thanks to the hot-hitting Follet, KSC jumped out to a quick lead in the bottom of the first inning on his pop up to left that fell just inside the foul line, and he made it 2-0 with an RBI single to right in the third.  Two batters later, Barnes brought home another with a base hit to center before he and Follet executed another first-and-third double steal that made it 4-0.

Thomas hit a speed bump in the top of the fourth as the Wolves answered with a pair to chop the deficit in half on Luke Dawson's two-run line drive single to right, but that was as close as they got.  In fact, three of their four hits in the game came in that frame.

Leading 4-2 in the bottom of the eighth, Keene State tacked on some insurance thanks to hustle from Cali, who legged out an infield single on a ground ball to second that helped plate a pair of runs for a 6-2 lead.  He finished with another multi-hit game.  Follet was 3-for-4 with a double, steal, and two RBI, while Barnes also tacked on a pair of hits.

Brennan (1-3) got the win, allowing one hit and one walk while whiffing two in 4.1 innings.

Zachary Barry fell to 1-2 for WCSU, allowing eight hits and four runs in seven innings (105 pitches) with seven K's.

Around the Horn

• Eaton extended his hitting streak to 16 straight.  He has a 1.094 OPS this season, is hitting .400, and has a team-leading 24 RBI.
• KSC has limited opponents to a .179 average with runners in scoring position over the last eight games.
• In the same time span, Follet is 12-for-23 (.522 AVG) with two doubles, two triples, three walks, and two steals.  Eaton is .429 and McCue at .409.
• The Owls stopped a four-game losing streak in the all-time series, one they lead 36-17.

Up Next

• Keene State travels to face Eastern Connecticut State University on Tuesday (April 9) for a 4:00 p.m. first pitch before hoping to return to their home field against Roger Williams University on Wednesday.
• WestConn will play the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth twice in Willimantic, Conn. at ECSU tomorrow starting at 12:00 p.m.