LEWISTON, Maine – Senior Griff Tewksbury hit a two-run home run in the sixth to lead Bates College baseball past Fisher College 4-0 in game two after Bates fell 2-0 in game one in a doubleheader at Leahey Field on Monday afternoon.
The Bobcats (10-10) rode Tewksbury's (Concord, N.H.) blast to a four-run sixth in game two of the team's home-opening twin bill after junior Spencer Hermann (Jacksonville, Fla.) threw a complete game shutout for the Falcons (28-12) in the first game. Both games comprised a scheduled seven innings.
Next, Bates plays at Gordon College on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. while Fisher hosts Mount St. Vincent tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Game One Recap – Fisher 2, Bates 0
The left-handed Hermann (1-0) struck out seven batters and allowed just three walks over seven innings to give Fisher a 2-0 win over Bates in game one.
Hermann – who scouts clocked in the low 90s from behind the plate – worked out of a jam in the fifth inning as the Bobcats loaded the bases with two outs before Hermann picked up his sixth strikeout of the day.
First-year Ryan McCarthy (Plaistow, N.H.) started the Bates threat with a single to center field. After a sacrifice from junior Alex Parker (Lewiston, Maine), classmate Rockwell Jackson (Fort Worth, Texas) and senior Steve Burke (Bedford, N.H.) both worked walks before the Falcons escaped the frame unscathed.
Fisher plated the game's first run in the top of the fifth as junior Elvis Perez (Bronx, N.Y.) led off the inning with a walk then made his way to second on a sacrifice, third on a single, and home on a passed ball. The visitors tacked on another run in the seventh off an RBI single to left field from junior Dominic Zaher (Chelmsford, Mass.).
Senior left-handed starter Chris Fusco (Annapolis, Md.) absorbed the loss (0-2) for the Bobcats despite allowing just one unearned run on three hits over five innings.
Game Two Recap – Bates 4, Fisher 0
Tewksbury launched his fourth home run of the season to right center with one man aboard in the sixth to propel Bates to a 4-0 victory over Fisher in game two.
After sophomore Samuel Warren (Norfolk, Va.) set the table with a double to right field to start the inning, Tewksbury enabled the Bobcats to score their first runs of the day with his blast. Junior Nate Pajka (Douglas, Mass.) furthered the rally with an RBI double, and first-year Brendan Fox (West Hartford, Conn.) capped the inning's scoring with a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Pajka.
Tewksbury and Pajka each collected a pair of hits for the Bobcats in the game.
Three Bobcat pitchers combined for the shutout as junior right-hander Will Levangie (Frederick, Md.) went five innings in the start, conceding just three hits. Junior Sam Maliska (Palo Alto, Calif.) earned the win (1-0) in a scoreless inning of relief, and senior Dean Bonneau (Amherst, Mass.) closed the door in the ninth.
Fisher junior right-hander Shawn Carlson (Andover, Mass.) struck out eight in 5.1 innings and allowed just three hits prior to giving up another three in the sixth, taking the loss (2-4).
Both teams nearly manufactured runs in the fourth inning with plays at the plate occurring in each frame.
For the Falcons, senior Victor Lebron (Union City, N.J.) led off the inning with a walk then advanced to third on a single. After a pitch nearly got away from Bobcat senior catcher Jeff Gunn (Lilburn, Ga.), Lebron dashed for home, but Gunn flipped to Levangie for the out.
On the Bates side, Tewksbury singled with one out and reached second after the right fielder failed to field the ball cleanly. Once Tewksbury advanced to third, junior Sam Berry (South Hamilton, Mass.) attempted to bring him home with a bunt, but Carlson fielded it to the right of the mound and fired to the plate just in time.