BROCKTON, Mass. – Senior Chris Sandini (Upton, Mass.) allowed one earned run on five hits and won his second straight start as Wentworth held off Curry, 4-2, in the first game of a The Commonwealth Coast Conference doubleheader played at Campanelli Stadium. The win extended the Leopards’ school-record winning streak to 10 and allowed the program to eclipse the 20-win mark for the third straight season. However, the streak would come to an end in the nightcap as the Colonels scored 19 runs on 13 hits to take a 19-6 win.
The Leopards got all their scoring in the first inning as junior Matt Jordan (Concord, N.H.) drew a leadoff walk and went to second on a one-out single from senior Pete Oggeri (Sandy Hook, Conn.). Both players moved up 90 feet when junior Ben Danker (Branford, Conn.) walked before the next batter, junior Mike Diodato (Asbury, N.J.), launched a grand slam to deep left field and give Wentworth a 4-0 lead.
Curry pulled within one in the fourth inning when, with one out, seniors Tim Sweeney (Walpole, Mass.) and Rick Vail (Lynnfield, Mass.) reached on back-to-back errors. After a single from senior Tony Luciani (Weymouth, Mass.), junior Sean Jackman (Stoughton, Mass.) grounded into a fielder’s choice, which would allow Sweeney to score. The sixth inning saw Sweeney lead off with a single and come home when the next batter, Vail, hit a double. The Colonels had runners at first and third with two outs, but Sandini got a strikeout to end the threat.
Sandini walked just two batters and struck out five to improve to 2-5 on the season. Sophomore Miles Galvin (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) took the loss for Curry to fall to 2-3. He allowed four runs on four hits and struck out four batters.
The nightcap was all Curry, as the Colonels would jump out to a 2-0 lead after one inning. Vail had an RBI groundout and Sweeney had a sacrifice fly to account for the scoring. An inning later the Colonels erupted for eight runs, with the big blow coming off the bat of Sweeney, who belted a three-run triple to center field. Leading 10-0, Curry plated five runs in the third inning, thanks in part to a two-run single from junior Brad Hawn (Chino Halls, Calif.) and a two-run double from sophomore Brian Morante (Westwood, Mass.).
Wentworth finally got to junior Mike Hughes (Middleboro, Mass.) in the fourth inning on an RBI single from freshman Alex Criscuolo (Hingham, Mass.), but the Colonels countered with two of their own in the top of the fifth to extend the lead to 17-1.
The sixth inning would see the Leopards score five times, as senior Anthony Carbone (Goshen, Conn.) belted a two-run triple to deep center and sophomore Kevin McKenzie (Arlington, Mass.) drove in a pair with a single. Curry rounded out the scoring with two in the top of the seventh.
Hughes improved to 4-1 on the year as he allowed one run on five hits and struck out eight batters in five innings of work. Sophomore Adam Farrar (Newport, Vt.) took the loss (2-1) as he allowed seven runs on three hits in 1.1 innings of work. Offensively for the Colonels, sophomore David Stevens (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) went 4-for-4 with three RBI, while senior Jesse Bruinsma (Lynnfield, Mass.), Hawn, and Sweeney each collected two hits. Sweeney also drove in four runs. Wentworth was paced by McKenzie who came off the bench to collect two hits and drive in two runs, while Carbone finished the day with two RBI.
Wentworth stands at 20-7 overall and 12-4 in TCCC play. The Leopards step out of conference on Wednesday to play at UMass Dartmouth at 3:30 p.m. Curry stands at 16-10 (12-4) and travels to Wheaton on Monday for a non-conference clash. (Game recap courtesy of Wentworth Sports Information)
