East Providence, R.I. – The Johnson & Wales
University baseball team split with Norwich in a Great Northeast
Athletic Conference double header at Pierce Field on Sunday
afternoon. Johnson & Wales posted a 7-1 victory in the opener.
Norwich then earned the split with a 13-11 win in the nightcap.
JWU got on the board early in the first game of the twin bill when
a two run double by senior Jonathan Melendez (Providence,
R.I.) put the Wildcats up 2-0. JWU extended their lead to
4-0 in the bottom of the third on back-to-back RBI singles by
Melendez and sophomore Zach Boyes (West Warwick,
R.I.). After junior Nick Alosco (Mahopac,
N.Y.)'s RBI single put the squad up 5-0 in the
fourth, JWU pulled ahead 7-0 in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI
groundout by freshman Tyler Newell (Westerly,
R.I.) and RBI single by senior Rich Fonseca (East
Providence, R.I.). Norwich managed to get on the board in
the top of the seventh, but it was not enough as the Wildcats
cruised to the 7-1 victory. Melendez was 2-for-3 with a run and
four RBI while Boyes went 3-for-3 with one run and one RBI. Junior
Nick Marine (Bristol, R.I.) notched the
complete-game victory for JWU, allowing one run on three hits with
five strikeouts.
In the nightcap, Norwich took the 1-0 lead in the top of the first
when an RBI single by freshman Kase Cook (Sharpsburg,
Ga.). Johnson & Wales responded in the bottom of the
second when senior Waldis Garcia (Lowell, Mass.)
led off with a single and scored on a double by Alosco to knot the
game at 1-1. Alosco then scored on a sacrifice fly by Melendez to
put the Wildcats up 2-1. JWU took the 3-1 lead on a single by
junior Matt Yaeger (Glendale, Ariz.), scoring
fellow junior Teddy Katz (Pittsburgh, Pa.). and
extended their advantage to 4-1 when Yaeger scored after a Norwich
throwing error. The visiting Cadets cut the lead to 4-3 in the top
of the fifth on an RBI single by senior David Wygonski
(Vernon Hills, Ill.) and an RBI groundout by junior
Dustin Fleming (Bridport, Vt.). JWU added to their
lead in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI double by Alosco and a
run scoring single by Katz. After a Norwich wild pitch scored a run
for the Wildcats, the team took the 9-3 lead on a two-run single by
Yaeger. Norwich rallied in the top of the fifth when they tallied
10 unearned runs to take the 13-9 lead. Johnson & Wales
responded in the bottom of the frame and cut the lead to 13-11 on a
sacrifice fly by Katz and a run scoring single by Melendez. After a
scoreless top of the seventh, JWU put two runners on base in the
bottom of the inning, but couldn't capitalize at Norwich held
on for the 13-11 win. Alosco went 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI
in the setback for Johnson & Wales while Katz was 2-for-3 with
two runs and two RBI for the Wildcats. Yaeger also recorded a pair
of hits for JWU. Junior Travis Dyke (Lewiston,
Maine) was 2-for-4 with three runs and two RBI for Norwich
while freshman Dustin Shimkus (Collinsville, Ill.)
was 3-for-5 with a pair of runs for the Cadets. Freshman
Brad Hudson (Eugene, Ore.) picked up the win for
Norwich, allowing two runs on four hits in three innings of work
while freshman Conar Mahon (Hopkinton, Mass.)
recorded his first save of the season.
With the split JWU is now 3-16 for the season and 1-3 in the GNAC
while Norwich is 2-12 for the year, 1-3 in league play. The
Wildcats will return to action on Wednesday, March 31 when they
host Mitchell in a non-conference contest, starting at 3:30
p.m.
