LOWELL, Mass. – Junior Alfred Mucciarone (Franklin, Mass.) was stellar on the mound, tossing seven strikeouts and allowing only four hits in a complete game effort, as the UMass Lowell baseball team (9-13, 2-2 America East) took a commanding 10–1 win over Maine (3-20, 1-3 America East) in the first game of the series on Friday afternoon.
Senior Carlos Martinez (Coamo, Puerto Rico), redshirt-sophomore Sean O'Leary (Foxboro, Mass.), and senior Zachary Scott (Lunenburg, Mass.) all performed well at the plate, as Martinez went 3-for-4 with three RBI and a run, O'Leary also went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI, and Scott was perfect, going 3-for-3 with a run.
After Mucciarone set up three quick outs on the mound for the River Hawks in the first, UMass Lowell capitalized on a scoring opportunity in the bottom half. Freshman Cal Chance (Wolcott, Conn.) led off with a double to right center, setting up Martinez, who followed with a single past the shortstop, driving in the game's first run. The Black Bears threatened to answer when they got back to the plate, but Mucciarone shut the door, retiring the side in order, capping off the inning with a strikeout. The River Hawks continued their strong offensive start by putting two on base in the home half of the second after senior Joseph DeLanzo (Nutley, N.J.) was hit by a pitch, and Scott drew a walk. With runners in scoring position, Chance delivered a sacrifice fly to center field, increasing the hosts' lead to 2-0. Although the Black Bears answered in the top of the third with a run of their own, Mucciarone regained his rhythm in the fourth, retiring all three batters and finishing the inning with a strikeout looking. Although the River Hawks started the bottom of the fourth with two singles from DeLanzo and Scott, the Black Bears' defense held firm, keeping it a one-run game through four.
The fifth inning produced no runs, as Mucciarone continued his commanding effort in the sixth, sending three straight hitters back to the dugout. The River Hawks were ready to strike in the sixth, loading the bases with a single by Scott, a crafty bunt from sophomore Brayden Cali (Taunton, Mass.), and Chance reaching on a walk. Next to the plate, junior Rowan Masse (Manchester, Conn.) drilled the second pitch to left field, helping bring two runners home for the River Hawks before O'Leary ripped a double in a two-strike situation, scoring a run on the play, to make it a 5-1 ballgame. Both Martinez and graduate student Jorge Burgos (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) kept the offense rolling, recording sacrifice flies that scored a pair of runs, increasing the lead to 7–1. Meanwhile, in the seventh, Mucciarone retired the side again, marking nine consecutive batters set down for the right-hander.
With just two innings left to play, Mucciarone's domination continued, as the junior recorded two more strikeouts in the eighth. UMass Lowell kept the offense rolling in the eighth, as Masse scored on a wild pitch, Martinez added an RBI double, and graduate student Nicholas Solorzano (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) brought in a run with a sacrifice fly, stretching the lead to 10–1. With only three outs to go, the River Hawks let Mucciarone finish what he started, as the Massachusetts native struck out the final batter of the game, finishing off his complete game effort and sealing a 10-1 victory for his squad.
The River Hawks look ahead to tomorrow, March 28, when they take on Maine in game two of the series at Edward A. LeLacheur Park. The game is set for 1 p.m. in Lowell, Mass.
