Baseball Topped By Owls in Conference Action

Hurrell and Koza blast home runs for Green and Gold

Fitchburg, MA: The Fitchburg State baseball team dropped a 12-5 decision to the Owls of Westfield State this afternoon in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from Riccards Field.

THE BASICS:

- Date: 4/26/24

- Score: Fitchburg State 5, Westfield State 12

- Records: Fitchburg State (10-23, 5-11 MASCAC), Westfield State (23-11, 11-5 MASCAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

-  Westfield State opened the scoring in the top of the fourth as senior Nolan Florence (Chicopee, MA) singled up the middle to bring in junior Justin Neidel (Attleboro, MA) before sophomore Thomas LaSpada (West Hartford, CT) followed with sacrifice fly to right field to score senior Devin Slattery (Ware, MA), while Florence eventually crossed the plate on a wild pitch for the 3-0 edge.

- The Owls pushed the lead to 7-0 in the following frame with junior Sam Palmer (Medfield, MA) and Florence connecting on two-run homers. Fitchburg State answered in the bottom half of the seventh when senior Matthew Kelly (E. Bridgewater, MA) reached on a fielders' choice that plated junior Matthew Smith (Flanders, NJ), while junior Jacob Hurrell (Haverhill, MA) brought home classmate Cole DuHaime (Warminster, PA) with an RBI groundout to second to make the score 8-2.

- Westfield State upped the lead in the top of the eighth as Neidel laced a two-run double done the right field line, while adding a pair of runs on miscues for the 12-2 advantage. The Falcons answered back in the bottom of the eighth with sophomore Adam Koza (Windham, NH) blasting a solo shot to left field to trim the lead to 12-3. The Green and Gold would plate two more runs in the bottom of the ninth when junior Liam Goldstein (Charlestown, RI) was hit by a pitch and Hurrell launched a two-run shot to center field, resulting in the 12-5 final.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

-  This afternoon's contest marked the 98th between Fitchburg State and Westfield State on the baseball diamond with the Falcons 23-75 all-time when taking on the Owls

-  Koza led the way for the Falcons, going 4-for-5 with a home run, one run scored and an RBI

-  Hurrell added one hit including a home run, one run scored and three RBI

-  Senior Joseph Hartnett (North Andover, MA) suffered the setback for Fitchburg State, giving up seven runs on seven hits and five K's in 4.2 innings of work

-  For the Owls, Palmer finished 2-for-5 with a double, home run, two runs scored and two RBI

-  Florence chipped in with three hits, including a home run, two runs scored and three RBI

-  Senior Ryan Lapierre (Pittsfield, MA) earned the victory for Westfield State, allowing two unearned runs on eight hits and seven strikeouts in 6.1 innings pitched

UP NEXT:

- Fitchburg State returns to action tomorrow as they travel to Westfield State to take on the Owls in a MASCAC double header, stating at 12:00PM.

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