BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Baseball team advanced in the first round of The Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament with an 8-1 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology Tuesday afternoon.
The Hawks jumped on top early, with Grant Bolin (Simsbury, Conn.) leading off the game with a solo homer, giving RWU a quick 1-0 lead. The one-run advantage held up for three innings before the Hawks added two more runs in the fourth. Bill Lambert (Hanover, Mass.) brought in Kevin Simpson (Londonderry, N.H.) with an RBI single. Bolin followed with an RBI single of his own, but the rally ended on that play with Lambert getting gunned out at home by Nick Cunningham to end the inning.
The scoring continued in the fifth for the Hawks, with Tim Georgen (Bristol, Conn.) heading to first after getting plunked to lead off the inning. He would later score on a wild pitch to the back stop to give the Hawks a 4-0 advantage. The big blow of the inning came off the bat of Alex Perry (Glastonbury, Conn.), who hit a two-run homer to right field, bringing in Zach Porter (Middleboro, Mass.) and putting RWU up 6-0.
In the sixth, back-to-back doubles by Stephen McKernan (Billerica, Mass.) and Lambert to start the inning added another run for the Hawks. Two batters later, Lambert scored on an RBI groundout by Georgen for Hawks's final run of the game.
Wentworth was able to score its only run in the eighth, Conner Flisnik (Marcy, N.Y.) struck out but reached first when the ball got away from McKernan. Flisnik moved over to third on Pete Oggeri's (Sandy Hook, Conn.) double, then scored on an RBI single by Jake McManus (Hopkinton, N.H.).
Brian Hurld (South Boston, Mass.) tossed seven innings of three-hit ball to earn his sixth win of the season, walking one and striking out five. Lambert went 3-for-4 with a run and two RBI, with Bolin adding two hits, two RBI, and a run.
Chris Sandini (Upton, Mass.) allowed eight runs (seven earned) in five innings of work in the loss. McManus finished 2-for-4 with an RBI, with Flisnik going 1-for-3 with a run.
Roger Williams (18-17-1) will take on Western New England College, who advanced with a 15-3 win over Nichols College, tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m., while Wentworth (22-16-1) hosts Nichols tomorrow at 3:00 p.m.
