BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Baseball team remains perfect in The Commonwealth Coast Conference, thanks in part to the first perfect game in Roger Williams University history pitched by sophomore Dan Roberge (Oakdale, Conn.). The Hawks swept the Sunday afternoon doubleheader against Wentworth Institute of Technology by the scores 1-0 and 5-3.

 

Roberge faced the minimum 21 batters and had a full count only three times in the game, striking out three in the process. In the final inning, Roberge flirted with danger after running the count to 3-2 on the leadoff batter Pete Oggeri (Sandy Hook, Conn.), but was able to get him to fly out to right field. Jake McManus (Hopkinton, N.H.) then popped up a 2-2 pitch to second base, setting up the final out. After getting ahead in the count, Roberge coaxed Nick Cunningham (Pembroke, Mass.) to ground out to Grant Bolin (Simsbury, Conn.) at short, setting off a scene in which Roberge was mobbed by his teammates at the mound, congratulating him on such an impressive performance.

 

Kevin Simpson (Londonderry, N.H.) doubled in Tony Verrocchi (Norwood, Mass.) for the game-winning run, who led off the fourth inning with a two-bagger of his own.

 

Wentworth's Dan Vasilauskas (Holliston, Mass.) took the hard-luck loss, scattering five hits over six solid innings with five strikeouts in the game.

 

The Leopard came out swinging in the second game, jumping out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first off of a Chris Carbone (Goshen, Conn.) two-RBI single. The Hawks got one of those runs back in the bottom of the inning on an RBI groundout by Jamie Dahill (S. Boston, Mass.).

Jarrett Ament (Boylston, Mass.) added another score for Wentworth in the top of the second, singling in Matt Dannenhoffer (Bethany, Conn.). RWU answered with an RBI double off Bolin's bat to keep the Hawks within a run.

 

Trailing 3-2 entering the bottom of the fourth, RWU took a 4-3 lead on back-to-back home runs by Alex Perry (Glastonbury, Conn.) and Zach Porter (Middleboro, Mass.). Simpson added an insurance run for the Hawks in the following inning, doubling in Bill Lambert (Hanover, Mass.).

Wentworth had a promising opportunity to score in the top of the sixth, loading the bases with only one out off of singles by Gerald Marquis (Marlborough, Conn.) and Dannenhoffer and a walk by Ament. Billy Dunn (Fiskdale, Mass.) entered after the walk and kept the Leopards from scoring, striking out Oggeri and getting McManus to line out to center. Dunn then set down the side in order in the seventh to get his third save of the year.

 

Sam Podbelski (E. Greenwich, R.I.) improves to 3-0, going 5.1 innings with three strikeouts. Lambert went 3-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored, while Porter homered in two at-bats and scored twice.

 

Doug Papuga (Branford, Conn.) took the loss, giving up four runs (three earned) in 3.2 innings of work. Carbone was 2-for-4 in the game with two RBIs, while Ament was 2-for-2.

 

Roger Williams (11-5, 4-0 TCCC) will play its rescheduled doubleheader against Curry tomorrow after 2:00 p.m., while Wentworth (12-5, 2-2 TCCC) hosts the University of Maine at Presque Isle Thursday at 12:30 p.m.