Fitchburg State Slips Past Newbury, 11-8

McMahon finishes 3-for-6 to lead Falcons to non-conference victory

BOSTON, Mass. (March 22, 2012) – Sophomore Patrick McMahon (S. Windsor, Conn./S. Windsor) finished 3-for-6 with three runs scored and one RBI as the Fitchburg State baseball team defeated Newbury College, 11-8 in non-conference action Thursday night.

The Falcons jumped on the scoreboard early posting four runs on one hit and one error. Fitchburg took advantage of early control problems from Nighthawk starter Ryan Sinclair (Portsmouth, R.I.) and a Newbury error late in the frame, but Newbury responded in the bottom of the frame, posting four runs on two hits to knot the score at 4-4.

Both teams added a pair of runs in the second inning to bring the score to a 6-6 tie before Newbury took the upper hand with a single run in the bottom of the third. Mike Perillo (Mansfield, Mass.) reached to lead off the inning before being pinch-run for by sophomore middle infielder Daniel Kovner (Hamden, Conn.), who stayed in the game at second. Kovner then swiped second and took third on a wild pitch before scoring on a ground-ball off the bat of Joey Herer (Needham, Mass).

After three scoreless innings of play, Fitchburg State regained its lead in the top of the seventh, plating three runs for a 9-7 advantage. Again, the Falcons took advantage of two Nighthawk errors, plating a pair of unearned runs and one earned run after a Shawn Trombley (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) walk.

Newbury cut its deficit to one (9-8) in the bottom of the eighth, using a Falcon miscue to plate a single run, but Fitchburg State padded its lead in the ninth, tacking on a pair of runs for an 11-8 advantage. Junior Zach Bombria (Bolton, Conn./Bolton), who came on in relief in the second for the Falcons, then closed the door for Fitchburg State, tossing a scoreless ninth for the victory.

McMahon paced the Falcons six hit attack, while junior Cody Bamforth (Vernon, Conn./Rockville), classmate Randy Ortiz, Jr. (Danielson, Conn./Killingly) and senior Will Comerford (Ayer, Mass./Ayer) all chipped in with one hit apiece. Senior Alex Chetelat (Farmington, Conn.) finished three-for-four with two RBIs to lead the Nighthawks.

Fitchburg State (2-8, 0-0 MASCAC) will be back in action on Saturday as it travels to Fisher College for a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. Newbury College (8-8, 0-0 NECC) will visit Lesley University on Saturday at 4 p.m.