Fitchburg State Falls Shorts To Newbury, 7-3

Alexander blasts second homerun of the season in Falcons non-conference setback

FITCHBURG, Mass. (March 31, 2011) – Senior Dave Alexander (Torrington, Conn./Torrington) blasted his second homerun of the season for the Fitchburg State baseball team but the Falcons fell to Newbury College, 7-3 this afternoon at Riccards Field.

Alexander provided the spark for the Fitchburg State offense, going 2-for-5 with a homerun and two RBI, while freshman David Mason (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) also finished with a pair of hits. Senior John Phelan (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), sophomore Jeff Boice (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) and junior Eric O'Reilly (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) all chipped in with one hit apiece to round out the Falcons offensive attack.

Newbury got on the board first, sporting two runs on three hits in the top of the first inning. A double by junior Patrick Curry (Hampstead, N.H./Pinkerton Academy) lifted the Nighthawks, while back-to-back singles from sophomore Russell DeMatties (Hamden, Conn./Hamden) and junior Alex Chetelat (Farmington, Conn./Farmington) capped the rally.

The Nighthawks added another pair of runs in the top of the second inning, taking advantage of a Falcon error and RBI single from Curry, but Fitchburg State rallied back, cutting its deficit to one (4-3) with three runs over the fourth and fifth frames. Alexander notched the big boost for the Falcons with a  two-run blast over the left field fence, while sophomore Zachary Bombria (Bolton, Conn./Bolton) added an RBI on a sacrifice bunt.

Clinging to a two-run lead (5-3) heading into the last stanza, Newbury clinched its tenth victory of the season, posting a two-run rally in the top of the ninth.  The Nighthawks used a pair of walks and a base-hit in the frame to load the bases before Chetelat stepped in and drove a two-run double to left center field.

On the hill, junior Matt Gulla (Westbury, N.Y./Carle Place) earned the victory for Newbury, tossing the first 5.1 innings of the contest. Gulla allowed just three runs (zero earned) on five hits, while earning his first victory on the year. Freshman Pat Mercier (Townsend, Mass./Saint Bernards) suffered the loss for the Falcons, yielding five runs on 11 hits, while striking out four.

Fitchburg State (5-8, 0-0 MASCAC) returns to action on Saturday as it travels to Salem State at 1 p.m. Newbury (10-9, 2-3 NECC) will visit Southern Vermont College on Saturday at 12 p.m.