Box Score

Junior James Katsiroubas (Milton, Mass.) went 3-for-5 with three runs batted in, but it wasn't enough as UMass Lowell baseball fell to Stonehill College, 10-6, on Wednesday night at LeLacheur Park.

The loss dealt a blow to the River Hawks' playoff chances, who now fall to 25-18-1 overall, 13-12-1 in the Northeast-10 and 8-10 in the Northeast Division. Still in sixth-place, UMass Lowell will need to sweep their season ending three-game series with Bentley to keep its playoff hopes alive. The Skyhawks improved to 27-18 on the year, 15-11 in the NE-10 and 10-8 in the division.

The River Hawks jumped on the board in the first inning, taking a 1-0 lead as Katsiroubas flared a single into right field that brought home senior Cam Kneeland (Rowley, Mass.) from second base.

The lead doubled in the second inning on a single into left field by freshman Jacob O'Keefe (Wellington, Fla.). Off with contact, classmate Jimmy Ricoy (Lowell, Mass.) motored around third and beat the throw to the plate with a head-first dive.

Stonehill got a run back in the third and then tied the game in the fourth. The Skyhawks scored their first run on an errant throw to third base to slim the score to 2-1, and then plated one more on a double down the left field line by Michael Magnussen (Carver, Mass.).

With momentum in hand, Stonehill exploded for three runs in the fifth. Among the key plays, Michael White (Lisbon, N.H.) hit an RBI single and Steve Popp (Unionville, Conn.) notched a one-run sacrifice fly to deep left field.

Needing a big bounce back inning, the River Hawks picked up some clutch hitting in the bottom of the fifth. Senior Matt Jacobs (Hudson, Mass.) and rookie Geoff DeGroot (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) hit back-to-back singles to set the stage for a one-out double into the left-center gap by Katsiroubas to cut the score to 5-4. Katsiroubas came home a few plays later on a sacrifice fly by Ricoy to tie the game.

UMass Lowell recaptured the lead in the sixth, scoring on a single by O'Keefe for the 6-5 advantage.

The see-saw action continued in the seventh after a two-run double to left by Billy Karalis (Pawtucket, R.I.) granted the Skyhawks a 7-6 lead.

Stonehill then plated three more runners in the ninth with a bases loaded double over the left fielder's head by Magnussen.

Starting pitcher Taylor Robinson (Haverhill, Mass.) completed 6.1 innings, allowing eight hits and seven runs—five earned—while walking two. He was relieved by senior Bryant Guilmette (Hopkinton, Mass.), who tossed two innings and surrendered one run. Classmate Dallas Nunes (Easton, Mass.) threw the final two outs and gave up two runs.

For the game, Katsiroubas batted 3-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored. O'Keefe also had a strong game, hitting 2-for-4 with two RBI.

Up next for the River Hawks, they host Dominican on Friday at LeLacheur Park for “Senior Day”. UMass Lowell will honor its seven seniors in a pregame ceremony: Bryan Deuel (Webster, N.Y.), Guilmette, Jacobs, Kneeland, Nunes, Mark Sanborn (Hopkinton, Mass.) and Tyler Toyfair (Agawam, Mass.).