Jack Margaros
@JackMargaros
On an extremely windy Thursday afternoon at Archie Allen Field, the Springfield College baseball team picked up its 14th win of the year over Becker College. The Pride overcame six errors in the field and fought back from a 5-2 deficit to grind out a 6-5 victory.
“We didn’t play well against a team that’s struggled this year, and probably should have lost that game,” head coach Mark Simeone said. “We were lucky to win today,”
The sloppy play started in the first inning, when starting pitcher Joe Gamache hit the first batter of the contest. During the next plate appearance, Gamache threw the ball away on an attempted pick off and then balked to advance the runner to third.
That same runner came around to score on another error by Gamache to give Becker an early lead. Several batters later, with two outs, Jack Cooney failed to secure a routine pop fly in left field to allow the second Hawks run to score.
Springfield responded with two runs in their half of the first to even the score. Chad Shade and Cooney both walked to lead off the inning, and attempted a double steal with Noah Bleakley at the plate. Becker catcher Cameron Plank overthrew the third baseman, and Shade crossed the plate for the Pride’s first run of the game. Bleakley singled up the middle a couple pitches later to score Cooney.
In the second inning, Becker plated three more runs on two errors. After consecutive two-out base hits, Chris Testa lifted a high pop fly to Connor Santoianni in right field. The freshman failed to haul it in, despite a diving effort, allowing the two runners on base to score. Testa initially stopped at third base, as it seemed Mark Joao secured possession of the cutoff throw.
However, the ball bounced of the heel of his glove, elevating high in the air. Becker’s third base coach sent Testa home, and he crossed home plate for a little league inside the park home run. That perhaps marked the lowest point of this game.
“We gotta toughen up otherwise we are going to look at each other disappointed,” Simeone said.
Gamache lasted four innings, giving up zero earned runs despite his two errors.
“He has not been consistent. He created some of his own problems. We didn’t play good defense behind him, but his command wasn’t there,” Simeone said.
Although committing two more errors, that three run blunder in the second inning was the last of Becker’s runs. Springfield rallied for two runs in the fifth and again in the seventh to finally take a lead.
In the fifth, Shade began the inning with a single and advanced to second on a passed ball. Cooney ripped a single to left field in the next at-bat to score his teammate, and eventually advanced to third through a stolen base and passed ball. After Joao drew a walk, Hawks reliever Christopher Ladou attempted to pick off Cooney at third, and overthrew his man. Cooney scored to cut Becker’s lead to one run.
In the seventh, Springfield loaded the bases with one out. Brandon Drabinski and Alex Denoyelle each drew walks to tie the game and take a 6-5 lead. Drabinski worked a stellar at-bat, going from 0-2 to 3-2 and fighting off multiple pitches before receiving his free pass.