Early Lead Holds as Judges Deny Baseball

Early Lead Holds as Judges Deny Baseball

WALTHAM, Mass. – The Curry College baseball team struggled to overcome an early 4-1 deficit, falling to the Brandeis University Judges on Sunday afternoon. The loss brings the Colonels to 9-18-1 on the year, while the Judges improve to 12-13.

The scoring got started in dramatic fashion, as the Judges struck first. With the bases loaded and two down in the bottom of the first, Tommy Sand (South Windsor, Conn.) worked a full count at the plate. With all three runners in motion, James Mello (Fall River, Mass.) delivered a wild pitch, which brought Victor Oppenheimer (West Hills, Calif.) home on the walk, but also allowed Dan Frey (Ipswich, Mass.) to score from second. Trailing by two heading into the second, Curry had their own chance to benefit from a wild pitch, as Brandeis starter Mason Newman (New Rochelle, N.Y.) put one through the catcher's legs, inducing a swing to strike out the batter, but allowing Jack Kallinich (Madison, Conn.) to score the first Colonel run, making it a 2-1 ballgame. In the Judges' half of the second, the hosts got the run right back to retake a two-run lead, as Frey ripped an RBI single into right. The following inning, Sand came around to score another insurance run, as Brandeis capitalized on some small ball. After a scoreless fourth, Curry made some noise in the top of the fifth as Jared Keller (Oxford, Conn.) knocked a two-run single down the left field line to plate Brandon Kelley (Medford, Mass.) and Adam Duarte (East Providence, R.I.), making it a 4-3 game. Nick Kavrakis (Southwick, Mass.) turned in a shutdown inning for the visitors in his fourth full inning of work, giving the Colonels a chance to mount a comeback. After Kallinich and Spencer Cookson (Sheffield, Mass.) reached base to start the sixth with just one out, Brandeis turned to Kyle Shedden (Spencer, Mass.) to escape the jam, getting just what they needed with a pair of strikeouts. Kavrakis stayed hot, allowing just two hits over the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, but the Curry bats nabbed just one of their own as the 4-3 deficit held into the top of the ninth. The Judges turned to lefty Greg Tobin (Medway, Mass.) to close out the contest, once again selecting the right man for the job as the junior retired the only three batters he faced to secure the one-run triumph.  

Kallinich and Keller headed the Colonel offense with identical 2-for-4 days, while the latter drove in a pair of runs. Sand went a perfect 3-for-3 on the other side, reaching base four times while picking up a walk, an RBI, and a run scored. Newman (2-3) earns the win, striking out four over five and a third while giving up just one earned. Tobin's perfect ninth and two K's earn him his first save of the year. Mello struggled early on with two runs and four walks in two thirds of an inning, making him 0-5 on the year with the loss. Kavrakis stopped the bleeding for Curry, closing out the final seven and a third with just two runs surrendered, but walks away empty-handed.

Curry gets two much needed days off before returning to the diamond on Wednesday, April 17 for a 3:30 p.m. home match-up with out of conference foe Suffolk University. Brandeis hits the road Tuesday, April 16 for a 5:00 p.m. tilt at non-conference opponent Trinity (Conn.).

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