Thursday, May 13, 2004

MAHONEY, PERRY SHUT DOWN USM IN UMASS VICTORY
Duo combines on six-hitter as Corsairs advance in Little East baseball tourney

      MANSFIELD, Conn. --  Left-handed pitchers Will Mahoney (MATTAPOISETT, MA) and Brandon Perry (SOUTH CARVER, MA) combined on a six-hitter and Doug Hittinger (MIDDLETON, MA) stroked a go-ahead home run in the fourth inning to vault the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth baseball team to a 6-3 victory over the University of Southern Maine Thursday night on the second day of the Little East Conference Tournament.

     A winner of five straight, fourth-seeded UMass (25-13) advances to meet top-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University (33-9) Friday at noon in a battle of the tournament's two remaining unbeatens. The winner of that game moves into the tournament's championship round  Saturday at noon, needing one victory to win the title and gain the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.

     The UMass-Eastern loser returns to play an elimination game at 7 p.m. Friday night against the winner of Friday's 3:30 p.m. elimination game between second-seeded Southern Maine (29-12-1) and sixth-seeded Keene State College (14-22-1). The 7 p.m. winner needs two wins Saturday to claim the title.

    Summoned to face the tying run with none out and two runners aboard in the ninth, Perry fanned all three batters he faced, striking out the No. 2 hitter swinging to end the game. Mahoney had given up five hits and carried a 6-3 lead into the ninth but surrendered a leadoff single by Tip Fairfield (MONMOUTH, ME) before walking Joe McGhee (WALPOLE, MA) to bring the tying run to the plate.

    Hittinger's two-run home run off complete-game loser Jason Thibodeau (OLD TOWN, ME) in the fourth gave the Corsairs the lead for good, 4-3 and UMass added two insurance runs in the sixth on an RBI double by Jim Peters(TAUNTON, MA) and Robert DelDuca's (METHUEN, MA) sacrifice fly.

   Thibodeau held the Corsairs to eight hits but walked six and his teammates commited four errors. Three of the runners who reached via walk eventually scored, with another run also coming across after getting aboard on an error.

    Peters had a double and triple and two RBI for UMass.

    Eastern has beaten UMass in 18 of 24 conference games -- two coming by shutout, 7-0, 13-0 this past April 17 -- but the Corsairs are 4-3 against Eastern in conference tournament play. Eastern lefty Ryan DiPietro (BERLIN) is expected to open on the mound for Eastern. DiPietro (7-0, 0.79), ranked first nationally in ERA and fourth in strikeouts per inning (13.8/122 in 79.3 innings), pitched a complete-game five-hitter in the team's 7-0 win over UMass.

                                                             Game 6
                     Massachusetts Dartmouth 6, U. of Southern Maine 3

So. Maine (29-12-1)             101     001   000 -- 3  6  4
UMass Dartmouth (25-13)  010     212   00x -- 6  8  2

       Jason Thibodeau (4-4) and Joe McGhee. Will Mahoney (4-3), Brandon Perry (9) and John Macone. Save-Perry (3). 2B-Jim Peters (MD); 3B-Peters (MD); HR-Doug Hittinger (5) (MD).