WINCHESTER, Ky. – Senior Carlos Martinez (Coamo, Puerto Rico) registered three hits with a double and a home run, while also posting six RBI on the day, as the UMass Lowell baseball team (1-2) fell in both games of the doubleheader against Morehead State (2-1) on Saturday.
"Game one I thought we pitched great," said Head Coach Nick Barese. "Foley competed and gave us a solid start to the game. I thought Jette and Rourke were excellent. We made some costly mistakes on the bases and struggled to hit situationally, and ultimately that was the difference. Game two we just dug ourselves too deep a hole. We gave their hitters too many chances to do damage and score big numbers in multiple innings. Credit to our hitters for fighting back, but the hill was just too steep to climb."
Junior Rowan Masse (Manchester, Conn.) knocked two hits and four runs to add to the offense on the day, as senior Joshua Lopez (Nanuet, N.Y.) tallied two hits with an RBI and one run, and senior Zachary Scott (Lunenburg, Mass.) added one hit, one run and an RBI. Freshman Cal Chance (Wolcott, Conn.) recorded two hits and a run in his collegiate debut with the River Hawks, as well.
Beginning on the mound in the first game, senior Brian Foley (Milton, Mass.) went 4.0 innings with a career-high eight strikeouts, allowing just one run during his appearance. Junior Kevin Rourke (Londonderry, N.H.) pitched in 1.1 innings with no runs, tossing a strikeout in game one of the doubleheader. Starting in the final game, sophomore Nolan Geisler (Bayonne, N.J.) threw in 1.1 innings with one strikeout. Making their collegiate debuts, freshman Colin Ducie (Plymouth, Mass.) appeared in 2.0 innings, tossing three strikeouts, while freshman Josh Doney (Lynn, Mass.) went 1.0 inning with a strikeout and no runs.
Foley got off to a hot start on the mound, registering two early strikeouts in the first before adding three more punchouts in the second, helping close the frame for the River Hawks. After Masse drew a walk and advanced to second on a steal, senior Joseph DeLanzo (Nutley, N.J.) seized the opportunity to bring him home, lining a RBI single up the middle, giving UMass Lowell an early, 1-0 lead in the third inning. Morehead State answered in the bottom half, tying the ballgame at 1-1 through three complete.
Foley stuck with it on the mound in the fourth, as the right-hander retired the side in order, recording back-to-back strikeouts to total eight, so far. During the next at-bat for UMass Lowell, the River Hawks put runners on the corners in the top of the fifth. Graduate student Nicholas Solorzano (El Dorado Hills, Cal.) then hit a routine bunt, scoring Masse on the play, helping UMass Lowell retake the lead at 2-1. In the bottom half, Foley was relieved by senior Jacob Jette (Franklin, Mass.), as the senior collected three big strikeouts to hold the runners in scoring position for the Eagles. Morehead State remained in the game though, scoring runs in both the sixth and seventh innings to grab a 3-2 lead headed into the eighth frame.
Although Solorzano cracked a leadoff double in the eighth, Morehead State's defense preserved the gap, escaping the top half before Rourke fronted a clean inning, leaving one frame left to play. The Eagles took care of business in the ninth, though, claiming the 3-2 victory in the first game of the twin bill.
In the second game, Masse led off with a bunt single, as Martinez followed with a ball to deep right field, tallying a RBI double for an early, 1-0 edge. Morehead State did not take long to respond, as a three-run home run put the host up, 3-1 after the first. The River Hawks placed two on base in the second after graduate student Jorge Burgos (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) was walked and Chance hit a double, but the Eagles were strong defensively, preventing the River Hawks from scoring. Morehead State capitalized in the bottom half, adding three runs for a 6-1 lead. The Eagles kept the same push over the next two innings, scoring nine runs to extend the difference to 15-1 after the fourth frame.
The next inning, after Scott and redshirt-sophomore Sean O'Leary (Foxboro, Mass.) advanced on base, Martinez took advantage of the situation, smacking the ball high over the right field wall for a three-run home run to make it 15-4. Two additional River Hawks reached base with Lopez hitting a ball deep to left field for a RBI double before the senior and Burgos scored on a fielding error, cutting the deficit to 15-7. Continuing the heavy offensive inning, Scott hit a one-run single, as Martinez was scorching hot, knocking a single to left center that drove in two more runs to make it a 15-10 difference after nine runs scored in the fifth. The home team responded, however, as Morehead State unleashed six runs, stretching the lead to 21-10 through five.
The River Hawks were searching for a late rally, but Morehead State scored one final run in the sixth before ultimately taking the final game, 22-10.
The UMass Lowell baseball team returns to action next Friday, February 20, when it travels to Port Charlotte, Fla. for the Snowbird Classic at Centennial Park, matching up against Illinois State in the first game of the weekend at 11:00 a.m.
