LOWELL, Mass. – Redshirt-sophomore Sean O'Leary (Foxboro, Mass.) went 3-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored, as the UMass Lowell baseball team (16–21, 6–10 AE) fell to the Bryant Bulldogs (20–18, 8–8 AE), 8–5, in game one of the conference series at Edward A. LeLacheur Park on Friday.
Senior Joseph DeLanzo (Nutley, N.J.) went 2-for-4 at the plate with a run scored, while senior Carlos Martinez (Coamo, Puerto Rico) added two hits in the contest, as well. Starting on the mound for UMass Lowell, junior Alfred Mucciarone (Franklin, Mass.) went 5.1 innings pitched with four strikeouts. Out of the bullpen, sophomore Jake LeFrancois (Worcester, Mass.) tossed 3.2 innings with one strikeout, leaving the opposition hitless and allowing no earned runs.
Bryant jumped out to an early lead, scoring the first run of the game in the top of the first before graduate student Nicholas Solorzano (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) caught a runner stealing second to send the home team to the plate. The River Hawks answered quickly, leading off with a walk by O'Leary, followed by an RBI single to left-center by freshman Cal Chance (Wolcott, Conn.) to even the score back up at 1-1 in the first. Bryant responded instantly, though, plating four runs from three hits in the second to jump back in front, 5-1. The River Hawks' bats stayed hot, as they opened the home half of the second with singles by junior Rowan Masse (Manchester, Conn.) and DeLanzo. With one out, O'Leary was patient at the plate, eventually knocking a full count base-hit to load the bags, setting up senior Zachary Scott (Lunenburg, Mass.), who drilled the ball down the right field line for a three-run triple, cutting the deficit to 5-4. During the next at-bat, Chance capitalized on his opportunity with one on, recording an RBI to tie the game back up at 5-5 heading into the third.
In the fourth, the Bulldogs capitalized on a fielder's choice to retake a one-run lead, but UMass Lowell refused to budge further, as they caught another runner stealing to get out of the inning. The visitors hit their stride, keeping UMass Lowell off the board in the home half of the fourth, before adding another run to take a 7-5 lead in the fifth. Although the home side couldn't find its rhythm on offense, LeFrancois stepped to the mound in the sixth, recording back-to-back outs to wrap up the top half. DeLanzo stroked a single during the River Hawks' next plate appearance in the bottom half of the sixth, but the Bulldogs remained connected on the field and worked out of the inning. After LeFrancois retired the side in order in the seventh, O'Leary led off for his team, launching a double to left-center to try to gain momentum for his squad. The Bulldogs locked in, though, refusing to allow the runner to reach home, keeping the score 7-5 with two innings remaining.
LeFrancois delivered another scoreless inning for UMass Lowell in the eighth before Solorzano lined a one-out double in the home half to spark a late rally. Bryant, however, stranded the runner in the eighth, and the visitors added a sacrifice fly in the ninth to seal an 8–5 decision on Friday night.
The River Hawks are back in action Saturday, April 25, for game two against Bryant at Edward A. LeLacheur. The contest is set to start at 1:00 p.m. in Lowell, Mass.
