WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Westfield State senior starting pitcher Ryan Lapierre (Pittsfield, Mass.) tossed seven shutout innings and the Owls got homers from Sean Clark (Dudley, Mass./St, John's Shrewsbury) and Nolan Florence (Chicopee, Mass.) in in a game 1 win, as Westfield swept a season-opening baseball doubleheader at the University of St. Joseph on Saturday.
The Owls won game 1, 4-1, and game 2, 11-8.
Lapierre allowed just two hits, struck out seven and walked none in earning the win in the opener. The game was a pitchers duel until the eighth, when Clark lofted a solo home run over the scoreboard in the short porch in left field.
Westfield tacked on three more runs in the eighth, two on a line-shot home run deep to left center from Florence.
Joe Fischer (Avon, Mass.) tossed an inning of scoreless relief, and Joe Espinola (Plymouth, Mass./North) worked around a single run in the bottom of the ninth to help seal the Owls victory.
The nightcap turned into a battle of the elements, as what began as a drizzle turned into a steady rain in 45-degree temps, ultimately cutting the game short after six innings.
Westfield jumped out to 7-0 lead through 2.5 innings, but the Blue Jays battled back, tying the game at 7-7 in the bottom of the fifth. Westfield struck for four in the top of the sixth, the big blow coming on a 2-run double to center field from Trey Faulkner (Springfield, Mass./Sabis).
Westfield's Sean Casey (RHAM/Amston, Conn.) picked up the win in relief of starter Ryan Donahue (Medfield, Mass.). Charlie Walsh (Medfield, Mass.) worked around three walks and a run in the sixth, before the umpires determined the mound conditions to be unfit to continue before the start of the seventh inning.
Clark and Sam Palmer (Medfield, Mass.) each had a pair of hits for the Owls, and catcher Thomas LaSpada (West Hartford/Hall) rapped a double while playing in his hometown.
Chase Belisle had a pair of hits for the Blue Jays, and Ben Balducci finished 1-3 with a run scored and two rbi, along with a nice diving catch in center field. Zacariah Evanko-Weber took the loss in relief. The Jays got a gritty, 5-inning relief stint from Alec Ash, who came in in the first inning before an out was recorded, and kept the game in check with a 99-pitch outing.
Westfield State improves to 2-0 on the season, getting their first two wins under new head coach Seth Kaplan. The Owls will play a doubleheader at Springfield College on Sunday starting at noon. USJ drops to 0-3 in their first season as an NCAA Division III program.