Box Score (PDF) | Interview

WORCESTER, Mass. – Zack Tower (Auburn, Mass.) broke up the scoreless tie with a solo home run to spark a four-run inning, as the UMass Lowell (9-7) baseball team powered past the Holy Cross Crusaders (6-13), 5-2, Wednesday night at Fitton Field.

"It was a really nice complete game from us," said Head Coach Ken Harring. "We got some key hits, pitched well and made some nice plays in the field and Tower got us going with that home run to start the four-run inning. Nick Barry's walk, Marchena's double and Ian Strom's two-out hits were all keys to that crooked number. Later on we executed the small ball plays we needed do to produce the fifth run. It was the best baseball game we've played in a couple weeks and hopefully we can ride a little bit of momentum into conference play."

Both starting pitchers put up zeroes until the top of the fifth, combining for 10 strikeouts. Tower's blast came in the fifth, as the junior connected on a pitch and sent it over the right field fence onto the Holy Cross football field for the 1-0 lead. The River Hawks' next two batters reached and Oscar Marchena (Miami, Fla.) drove home Brice Erickson (Leominster, Mass.) on a double into the gap in left center.

Ben Prada (Laurel, Md.) scored Nick Barry on a RBI groundout, and Ian Strom (Hopedale, Mass) completed the scoring with a single to left, scoring Marchena.

The Crusaders got two runs in the bottom half of the frame and chased Ricky Constant (Nashua, N.H.) from the game, but Kendall Pomeroy (Shrewsbury, Mass.) induced a double play with the bases loaded to end the threat.

Prada recorded his second RBI of the night, poking a single to center in the seventh to score Barry and extend the buffer to 5-2.

Brendan Long (Naples, Fla.) shut the door in the ninth to pick up his fifth save of the season, and Pomeroy improved to 2-0.

Prada and Barry led the team with two hits, and Prada drove in a team-high two runs. Constant struck out three in 4 1/3 and Nick Rand (Hyde Park, N.Y.) struck out two in one inning.

The River Hawks begin conference play with a three-game series at UMBC this weekend, playing two on March 26 and one on the 27.