BANGOR, Maine – The Husson University baseball team used two dominant pitching performances from senior Matt Wallingford and graduate student Alex Smith to limit the offense of SUNY Cobleskill, en route to another doubleheader sweep in North Atlantic Conference at the Dr. John W. Winkin Sports Complex, winning 3-2 in game one, before taking a commanding 11-1 victory in the finale on Tuesday afternoon.
GAME ONE: Husson 3, SUNY Cobleskill 2
Husson (16-9, 9-0 NAC) staved off a bases-loaded jam in the top-half of the ninth inning from Cobleskill (7-14, 6-1 NAC) to pick up a nail-biting win in Tuesday's opening game.
Fresh off of setting a new program record for RBIs in last night's game, graduate student Jackson Curtis got the Eagles on the board first in the bottom of the first inning to drive in fellow fifth-year Akira Warren.
After the Fighting Tigers knotted the contest back up at one in the visitor-half of the second, Warren recorded his second run scored of the game on a passed ball, while sophomore Matt Holmes extended the Husson lead to two runs on an RBI-double down the right field line to plate senior Tanner Evans.
The middle innings of the opening game saw both pitchers settle in, as neither side managed to put more than one runner on in any frame up until the eighth inning.
Cobleskill fought back in the eighth after chasing Wallingford following seven innings on the mound, as an RBI-single with runners on first and second gave the Fighting Tigers their second run of the contest.
After the Eagles were unable to drive in an insurance run following a one-out double from junior Cam Rendell, Cobleskill put one last push together in the top of the ninth.
A one-out walk and a two-out single gave the Fighting Tigers some life, while a controversial call at first-base provided them a bases loaded opportunity to potentially take the lead.
Junior Tanner Audyatis weathered the storm on the base path and managed to induce a weakly-hit pop up to end the game and secure the win, while posting his first save of the season.
J. Curtis led the Eagles at the plate with two of their six hits, while Warren accounted for two of the three runs and five different Eagles registered walks in the contest.
Wallingford was very productive in his seven innings of work on the hill, allowing just one unearned run on three hits and two walks, while striking out eight batters.
GAME TWO: Husson 11, SUNY Cobleskill 1
Contrary to game one of the twinbill, Cobleskill (7-15, 6-2 NAC) struck first in the top of the first inning on an RBI-single, but it was all Husson (17-9, 10-0 NAC) after that.
The Eagles matched the one-run first inning of the Fighting Tigers in their first turn at the plate on an RBI-fielder's choice from junior Hunter Curtis, while sophomore Tanner Crowley took advantage of a throwing miscue from Cobleskill in the bottom of the second to give Husson the lead.
Evans doubled the lead for the Eagles later on in the second with an RBI-single to give Husson a 3-1 edge after two complete innings.
Husson broke the game open in the bottom-half of the fourth with a six-run inning, which was started with a two-RBI single from J. Curtis.
A sacrifice fly from Holmes brought in a third run in the frame for the Eagles, while a miscue from the Cobleskill outfield allowed an unearned run to cross the plate.
Crowley produced the final two runs of the inning with a two-RBI double to left-center, as the Eagles led 9-1 after four innings.
Husson added one run each in the fifth and six innings on the third RBI of the game from J. Curtis, in addition to an RBI-triple from junior Colin Marshall to close the scoring.
J. Curtis once again led the Eagles at the plate with four hits in four at-bats, posting three RBIs and one run scored, while Crowley and Marshall added two-hit performances and Crowley contributed two RBIs.
Smith recovered from a rough first inning where he allowed the Fighting Tigers to load the bases, as he fired a complete game for the first time in his career. The veteran right-hander allowed just one run on five hits and one walk, while sending down six batters on strikes in his second victory of the year on the mound.
Husson is back in action one week from today when it hosts Bowdoin College in non-conference action for a single game beginning at 5 p.m.
