Box Score First Game Box Score  Second Game Box Score


Dominant pitching and a late explosion gave UMass Lowell a doubleheader sweep, 8-2 and 9-1, against Philadelphia University Monday afternoon at Diamond Nation in Flemington, N. J.
 
The River Hawks improved their record to 3-1, Philadelphia University dropped to 1-3.
 
“We really pitched well,” says UMass Lowell Coach Ken Harring.  “(Christian) Lavoie set the tone for us in the first game and (Tyler) Toyfair threw the best I've seen him pitch in the second game.”
 
Sophomore righthander Christian Lavoie (Hopkinton, Mass.) picked up his first win of the year going 8.2 innings allowing just six hits and two unearned runs in the opener.  The 6-foot 4-inch Lavoie struck out four.  He did not walk a batter.
 
“He had command of his fastball and he found his breaking ball in the middle innings,” says Harring, “and the fastball is the best pitch in baseball.”
 
It was senior righty Tyler Toyfair (Agawam, Mass.) who impressed in the second game.  He pitched into the seventh inning, allowing just three hits, a walk and one run.  He struck out three.
 
“He really pitched rather than throw,” says Harring.  “His fastball was electric, his slider was electric.
 
Senior James Katsiroubas (Milton, Mass.) had four hits, three runs batted and scored three times on the day.  Sophomore Jimmy Ricoy (Lowell, Mass.) banged out three hits, three RBI and scored four runs in seven at bats.
 
Despite the scores the day was not an easy one.
 
Four singles, five walks, a hit batsman, a stolen base and sac fly added up to an ugly eight run outburst, braking a 1-1 ballgame wide open, as the River Hawks sent 13 men to the plate in the eighth inning of the nightcap.
 
A bases loaded walk to Katsiroubas would give the ball club a lead they would not surrender.  A Ricoy single upped the lead to two.  A Pat Parker (Merrimack, N. H.) walk and a Matt Sanchez (Sunrise, Fla.) sac fly increased the lead to four.  A hit batter and walk added two more runs before senior Pat Devlin (Tewksbury, Mass.) put an exclamation point on the inning with a two run single to right center making the score 8-1.
 
After pounding out 11 hits in the first game, the River Hawks had struggled to get the bats going in the nightcap.
 
Small ball gave the River Hawks their first run of the nightcap.  Sanchez walked to open the fifth inning, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a sophomore Ryan Gendron (Nashua, N. H.) single. It was UMass Lowell's first hit of the ball game.
 
“It was a good at bat,” say Harring of Gendron.  “He'd been down two strikes and hung in there.”
 
Philadelphia sent the seven inning nightcap into extra innings with a run in the bottom of the seventh on a sacrifice fly.
 
Junior Mike Calzetta (Lawrence, Mass.) and senior Greg Leger (Bridgewater, Mass.) each threw an inning of shutout relief.  Calzetta picked up the win, his first of the year.
 
Four River Hawks had multi-hit games as UMass Lowell won the opener, 8-2.
 
Katsiroubas led the 11 hit attack with three hits, including two doubles, and two runs batted in. Sophomore Geoff DeGroot (Wesley Chapel, Fla.,) Ricoy and Parker had two hits.  Ricoy and Sanchez each drove it two runs.
 
The River Hawks jumped in front in their first turn at the bat.  Katsiroubas drilled a one-out double to right center scoring sophomore DeGroot who had opened the inning with a single, from third.
 
UMass Lowell got itself a bit of breathing room adding two runs in the sixth inning.
 
Katsiroubas opened the inning with a bouncing ball single to left and scored one batter later when Ricoy doubled to left center.  Ricoy moved to third on an infield out and scored on a junior Greg Wilson (Medford, Mass.) sacrifice fly to center.
 
The River Hawks broke it open in the seventh.  Katsiroubas doubled to center to drive in Devlin who'd opened the inning with a single.  Katsiroubas, who'd taken third on a throw to the plate, scored moments later on a Ricoy single.  Ricoy scored two outs later on a Sanchez single. 6-0.
 
UMass Lowell added two in the ninth inning.  The first run crossed the plate on a wild pitch, the second on an infield out.
 
Philadelphia University avoided the shutout scoring two unearned runs in the bottom of the ninth.
 
Junior Nick Boutoures (Wilmington, Mass.) closed out game-one striking out the only batter he faced.
 
The River Hawks will return to Flemington, N. J. next weekend for a three game series against East Stroudsburg University.