BANGOR, Maine – The Husson University baseball team earned a doubleheader sweep of Lesley University on Monday afternoon with both victories coming in come-from-behind fashion. Senior Jackson Curtis hit a walk-off grand slam to capture an 8-7 win for Husson in game one, while freshman Matt Holmes turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead when he blasted a two-run home run to right-center field, as the Eagles came away with a 5-3 win in the series finale.
GAME 1:
After two and a half scoreless innings to open Monday's opening game, sophomore Colin Marshall put Husson (6-7, 3-1 NAC) on the board first when he doubled home Holmes, who led off the inning with a single. Senior Akira Warren gave the Eagles their second run of the inning when he plated Marshall, as it was 2-0 Husson through three innings.
Lesley (9-10, 1-3 NAC) doubled-up the Eagles in the fifth inning, as it tallied four runs on three hits and took control of the game. Husson posted another two-run inning in the home-half of the inning, as Holmes led off the inning with a double and scored again two batters later when Marshall hit a sacrifice fly to right field to bring the Eagles within one. Sophomore Keegan Cyr scored the 4th run of the contest for Husson after drawing a walk, as Warren plated him on his second base-hit of the game.
Another big inning from the Lynx gave them a 7-4 edge after six innings of play and left the Eagles with slim hopes of a comeback headed into the bottom of the seventh. Freshman Ryan Bousquet got some traffic on the bases to start the inning after drawing a walk. Two of Bousquet's teammates followed his lead as Cyr and Warren both drew free passes to load the bases with one out for Curtis, who didn't waste the golden opportunity in front of him, as he sent Husson to victory in game one with a walk-off grand slam that cleared the left field fence.
Sophomore Cam Rendell got the start on the hill and hurled 4.2 innings of two-hit baseball, allowing just one run (0 earned). Senior Ryan Penney settled things down for the Husson pitching staff, as he posted two shutout innings and came away with his first win of the season.
GAME 2:
A third big inning of the day for Lesley got Monday's finale started, as the Lynx tallied three runs on two hits in the first inning to bolt out to a quick 3-0 lead. The Eagles gradually chipped away at the deficit, with Rendell getting them on the board in the bottom of third, courtesy of a single to right field that scored Cyr from second base.
Husson used some small-ball to get within one run of Lesley, as junior Ryne Rametta drew a lead-off walk in the home-half of the fourth to get things rolling. After Rametta moved to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt from senior Austin Snow, Marshall tallied his second sacrifice fly of the afternoon to bring the Eagles to within one.
Some two-out magic in the following inning gave Husson the lead, as Rendell gave the Eagles a two-out baserunner following a single through the right side and Holmes pushed Husson in front the following at-bat with a two-run homer over the right-center field fence.
The Eagles added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth after Rametta drew a lead-off walk for a second-consecutive inning and was singled home by Marshall after he stole second base. Husson rode the strong pitching of Wheaton to get back into game two, as Wheaton threw 4.1 innings, allowing two hits and no runs, while striking out five batters and earning his first win of his career in just his fourth appearance in a Husson uniform.
The Eagles will be back in action on Thursday when they return to non-conference action and travel to Standish to take on Saint Joseph's College of Maine at 4 p.m.
