WENHAM, Mass. – The Roger Williams University Baseball team and Gordon College split two well pitched games by the identical scores of 4-1, on a sunny afternoon in Wenham.
The opener went to the Scots as freshman Eric Wolak was the hero, both on the mound and at the plate. Wolak started the scoring in the 1st inning when he launched a solo shot over the wall in right field, giving Gordon an early 1-0 lead.
Gordon built on their lead in the 3rd inning when Andrew Zgrablich doubled off the right center field fence and came around to score on a ground ball by Steve Myhren.
Wolak retired 10 batters in a row between the first and 4th inning, and continued to hold RWU at bay while Gordon put together another rally in the 5th inning. JT Waldie's 9-pitch walk forced in a run and Adam Clark's two-out single scored another, and Wolak carried a 4-0 lead into the 6th inning.
In the 6th, RWU got on the board when Alex Perry (Glastonbury, Conn.) crushed a long home run to right center field. The subsequent batter, Jamie Dahill (South Boston, Mass.) reached on an error, but Wolak retired the next 2 hitters to get out of trouble.
In the 7th inning, the Hawks went quietly, as Wolak picked up his first collegiate win, going the distance on only 85 pitches and allowing just a single hit.
Roger Williams' Dan Roberge (Oakdale, Conn.) turned the momentum in game 2, as he turned in an equally dominant pitching performance. Gordon threatened in the first inning, when Zgrablich reached second and Steve Kefalas blasted a long fly ball to the left center field warning track that was run down by Dahill.
The Hawks took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning, when Justin Reyes (Lincoln, R.I.) doubled and scored on an infield hit. RWU built on their lead in the 3rd on a single from Perry and a long RBI double from Dahill. Meanwhile, Roberge was in total command after the first inning, fanning 7 hitters through the first 4 innings.
Gordon broke through in the 5th inning on a pinch-hit double from Rob Mansfield and 2 misplayed bunts. However, Gordon stranded 2 runners in scoring position and trailed 2-1 after 5 innings. With the score still 2-1 in the 7th inning, Roger Williams added 2 big insurance runs on a sacrifice fly from Grant Bolin (Simsbury, Conn.) and another hit from Dahill.
Trailing 4-1 with 2 outs in the bottom of the 7th, Chris Mills walked and Zgrablich was hit by a pitch. The Hawks summoned closer Billy Dunn (Fiskdale, Mass.) in for the save, but Aaron Whittet drew a walk to load the bases. However, Dunn fanned Wolak on a 2-2 curveball to end the contest.
Roger Williams moves to 8-5-1 in the TCCC, while Gordon now stands at 4-10 in conference. The Scots will be back in action on Thursday in a non-conference matchup at Fisher. The Hawks will host Wheaton College Thursday at 4:00 p.m.
- Release courtesy of the Gordon College Sports Information Department
