KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College baseball team did something they have not done in 12 years, and because of it are in a first-place tie in the Little East Conference standings with two weeks to go. After starting the season 0-4 and dropping to 8-13 after another four-game losing streak, the Owls have now won seven straight, their longest winning streak since 2013, as they pummeled the University of Southern Maine 14-8 and 12-2 (8 innings) in a Senior Day doubleheader on Saturday at the Owl Athletic Complex.
Highlights (Game 1)
Highlights (Game 2)
Postgame Interview (Coach Blood)
Postgame Interview (Tommy Ahlers & Luke Anderson)
During the winning streak, KSC (15-13, 8-2 LEC) has hit a remarkable .387 as a team, outscoring opponents 87-24, including 43-7 in the first three innings. The surge began with the Owls sweeping the University of Massachusetts-Boston (currently 9-3 in the conference, percentage points behind first place), and rolled along through Western Connecticut State University, Vermont State University Castleton, and now Southern Maine. The Huskies (11-17, 6-5 LEC), who entered the day 9-7 since a 2-8 start to the season including splits against both UMass-Boston at home and at Eastern Connecticut State University, saw KSC's torrid offense rip through eight different arms.
In the opener, the Owls built a 6-1 lead through three innings as
Shea Zina, one of five seniors honored before the first game, ripped a two-run double to left, and
Ethan Rainha, who had seven hits on the day in 10 at bats, later added an RBI single up the middle. Jack LeBlond hit one of his two home runs on the day to make it 6-3 in the fourth, but KSC responded with solo shot by Ahlers (his fourth) and a Zina sacrifice fly that scored
Jonathan Chatfield to retake a five-run lead.
One of USM's lone highlights of the twinbill was a five-run, five-hit fifth including LeBlond's second home run in as many at bats on an 0-2 pitch from
Troy Brennan that made it 8-8. The tie did not last the bottom half of the inning, though, as
Luke Anderson and
Evan Cali walked to begin the frame,
Evan McCue sacrificed both into scoring position with a bunt, and Ahlers laced a two-run single to left for a 10-8 lead.
Brennan stranded a pair in the sixth, and KSC went back to work at their next trip to the plate, building a comfortable lead again, all with two outs that was sparked by
Derek Finlay's first hit of the season and as an Owl after rehabbing from an injury and transferring from the University of Albany. Rainha followed with another hit, stole second, and Anderson was then plunked to load the bases. Cali then came through with a huge triple pulled to right over Hunter Brissette's head that cleared the bags and made it 13-8. McCue then smoked a double to the left center gap to tack on another, plating Cali as the top five in KSC's order combined to drive in 11 runs with three apiece by Cali, Ahlers, and Zina.
The Owls closed it down from there, with Brennan firing a hitless seventh and
Liam Conley tossing two strong relief innings with three strikeouts, allowing just one hit.
Brennan (2-0) got the win, allowing two hits and one run in two innings with one walk and two strikeouts. Jack Bruno (1-1) took the loss, allowing two runs and walking three while recording just one out.
Jake Jachym started for KSC, allowing seven runs (six earned) and eight hits over 4.1 innings of work. He walked one and struck out three.
Keene State hammered both Southern Maine starters, including Colin McDonald, who allowed eight runs (six earned) and 11 hits in just 3.2 innings. He walked one and whiffed four.
Carson Black (3-4) fared about the same in the second game, as the Owls tagged him to the tune of 11 hits and nine runs in 4.1 innings. He did strike out six without a walk, but hit two batters and was chased in the fifth down 8-2.
KSC broke the scoring ice in the bottom of the second when Chatfield stung a 2-0 pitch deep the center for his ninth long ball of the season.
Otis Follet and Rainha then sandwiched singles around Zina being plunked to load the bases, and Anderson was hit two batters later to force in a run to make it 2-0.
Southern Maine responded against an erratic
Camden Thomas in the third, walking three times and scoring on a fielder's choice and the third of the three free passes when Brissette took home on a throw to second (on ball four) to tie the game despite getting just one hit in the frame (a bouncer to left by Sam Economy). However, Thomas got an important grounder to short off the bat of Peter Keblinsky to end the inning and keep it 2-2, and KSC's bats went back to work to answer right back as they did all day. Chatfield again sparked a rally, this time connecting for a single back up the middle. Follet followed with a double into the right center gap to put two runners in scoring position with one down, and Rainha rolled a two-out run-scoring single into right two batters later to make it 3-2. Anderson, who drove in seven runs on the day to fall one short of
Evan McCue's single-game program record of eight set earlier this year, then came up with one of the biggest hits of the day – a three-run double out of the reach of diving leftfielder Mike Anquillare that put the Owls up 6-2.
Thomas was chased after loading the bases with two down in the fourth, but
George Young (2-1) needed one pitch to get Hunter Brissette to sky to center, and that was the start of 4.1 scoreless relief innings from Young and
Jack Lang. They combined to allow just two hits and strikeout three without a walk. Lang needed just 14 pitches to get four outs.
KSC removed much of the doubt about the outcome by scoring four more times in the fifth, as Zina and Rainha began the frame with singles to left.
Hamilton Barnes executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to move both runners up, and Anderson came through with a gap-shot single to right to plate both and make it 8-2. Two batters later, McCue crushed an inside breaking ball from Lucas Francis nearly over the tall trees in left field to tack on two more.
The Owls finished with 19 hits in the second game and a whopping 35 on the day, including four home runs. Zina joined in on the long ball fun to kick off the eighth, losing the first pitch he saw from Noah McMahon to left. Rainha stayed scorching with a double, and KSC ended the game by run-rule as they recorded four straight hits to start the eighth including a de facto "walk-off" single by, fittingly, Anderson.
Young pitched three scoreless frames for the Owls out of the bullpen, allowing two hits and striking out two.
KSC has won three straight against the Huskies for the third time in the all-time series and swept them for the first time since 2010 when they won 12-10 and 12-6 in Keene on May 1. The Owls also memorably took two from USM in blowout fashion (21-2 and 14-7) to claim their first-ever Little East tournament championship on their home field in 2008.
Hosting the tournament this year remains on the table this year for the Owls, who are tied with Eastern Connecticut and host the Warriors (21-8, 8-2 LEC) in a big conference game on Tuesday (April 22) at 3:00 p.m. ECSU defeated the Owls 12-7 in Mansfield, Conn. on April 9, before KSC began their current winning streak.
