PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Roger Williams University baseball team fell to Johnson & Wales (Providence), 12-5, on Wednesday afternoon at JWU in the Conference of New England (CNE) opener for both teams.
JWU broke the game open immediately, erupting for 10 runs in the bottom of the first inning behind three home runs and multiple run-scoring hits. Yedan Diaz got things started with a two-run homer before Jack Obert followed with a solo shot. Later in the frame, Jeremy Auren delivered a two-run single, Diaz added a two-run single of his own, and Obert capped the inning with a three-run homer to make it 10-0.
The Hawks responded in the second inning as Luke Miele (Wellesley, Mass.) drove in a run with a single. RWU added two more in the fourth inning on sacrifice flies by Jack Tubman (Bellingham, Mass.) and Will Florio (San Jose, Calif.), trimming the deficit to 10-3.
The Wildcats extended their lead with a solo home run from Justin Hernandez in the fourth and an RBI single from Diaz in the seventh to make it 12-3.
Roger Williams continued to chip away late, scoring in the eighth inning when Sam Arcieri (Westwood, N.J.) reached on an error, allowing Miele to score, and adding another in the ninth on an RBI single from Rory Lynch (Easton, Conn.) to bring the final score to 12-5.
Offensively, Lynch led the Hawks with a 3-for-5 performance and an RBI, while Casey DeLorenzo (East Greenwich, R.I.) went 2-for-5 with two runs scored. Miele added two hits and an RBI, and Noah Hester (Old Saybrook, Conn.) also recorded a pair of hits and scored once. Despite tallying 11 hits and drawing six walks, the Hawks stranded 14 runners on base.
On the mound for the Hawks, Robert Stock (Oceanport, N.J.) took the loss after allowing eight runs in just 0.2 innings in the opening frame. Dylan Brenner (Andover, Mass.) provided a strong relief outing, going 6.1 innings while allowing four runs and striking out seven. Gianni Mercurio (Newbury, Mass.) added a scoreless inning with two strikeouts.
JWU was powered by Diaz, who went 4-for-5 with five RBIs, while Obert finished 3-for-5 with two home runs and four RBIs. The Wildcats totaled 13 hits in the win.
On the mound for the Wildcats, Dylan Young took the win after allowing just three runs in 5 innings and striking out five. Michael Cobb kept the Hawks to one run over three innings of relief, while Evan LaMothe closed the game out for JWU allowing one run in one inning.
Roger Williams (6-6, 0-1 CNE) will look to rebound as they travel to Babson on Tursday, Mar. 26 for a 3:30pm start. JWU (5-9, 1-0 CNE) will head to University of Saint Joseph (CT) on Thursday, Mar. 26.
