MILTON, Mass. – The Curry College baseball team wrapped up their Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) schedule by splitting a double-header with the Salve Regina Seahawks at home on Saturday afternoon. The Colonels dropped game one but came out swinging to mercy their guests in game two, capping off Senior Day in good spirits. With the split, the Colonels move to 11-23-1 on the year with a 3-10-1 conference mark. Salve goes to 19-14 overall with a CCC record of 8-6.

Game One: Salve Regina 5, Curry 3

The Seahawks got on the board first, scoring a run in each of the first two innings on just a single hit and an error. In the bottom of the second, however, Adam Duarte (East Providence, Mass.) sent a home run over the fence in straightaway center field to knot the score at two. After a scoreless third, Curry saw their first lead of the day in the fourth inning, as Garrett Fosher (Exeter, N.H.) came around to score on Duarte's second hit of the contest, making it 3-2. However, as Salve got back to the plate in the top of the fifth, Curry starter James Mello (Fall River, Mass.) ran into some trouble. After recording the first two outs of the inning with a runner on second base, a double off the bat of Zach Barlok (Cheshire, Conn.) tied the game at three. A batter later, Sean O'Malley (Darien, Conn.) sent a no-doubter over the wall in right to give the lead back to the Seahawks at 5-3.

Trailing by a pair, the Colonel offense continued to be quieted by the pitching of Will Ginsberg (Sharon, Mass.). The Salve starter held Curry to one hit and just two baserunners over the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings. Ginsberg collected 1-2-3 innings in both the seventh and eighth, heading to the ninth with a climbing pitch count. Catcher Dylan Ketterer (Plymouth, Mass.) started the bottom of the ninth by drawing a walk, but a pinch-hit fly out and a 1-4-3 double play closed out game one and Ginsberg's first complete game of the season.

Barlok and Duarte were the only batters to post multi-hit games. Duarte collected a game high three RBI while O'Malley led Salve with a pair. Mello falls to 0-7 on the year, surrendering five runs (four earned) over four and two thirds. Michael Mulrean (South Easton, Mass.) came in to stop the bleeding, shutting out the Seahawks over the final four and a third, but walks away empty-handed. Ginsberg improves to 4-2 on the year, registering his first complete game. The senior struck out eight Colonels and gave up just six hits while throwing only 105 pitches.

Game Two: Curry 12, Salve Regina 2 (F/7)

Following their game one win, Salve once again got the scoring started with a 2-0 lead in the back half of the twin billing. In the top of the fourth, O'Malley sent his second dinger of the day out to right to plate Dylan Ketch (Clinton, Conn.) and himself. The lead would not last long, however, as Curry got their bats going in the bottom half of the frame. Jared Keller (Oxford, Conn.) drew a walk to start the inning, before a single by Jason Leonard (Dedham, Mass.) moved him over to second. The runners moved to second and third on a wild pitch, but a pop up gave Salve the first out of the inning. With a pair of runners in scoring position, pinch-hitter Mitchell Carvalho (Cranston, R.I.) punched a grounder to second to drive in a run. After senior Jack Kallinich (Madison, Conn.) walked to put runners on first and third, Duarte struck again, hitting his third big fly of the year and second of the day to put the hosts ahead 4-2.

As the top of the fifth inning rolled around, drama started brewing on the diamond. After Colton Eremian (Boca Raton, Fla.) earned a leadoff walk, it seemed as though he was caught trying to steal second. However, after a conference between the umpires, Eremian was awarded second as Curry pitcher Zach Wensley (Raynham, Mass.) was charged with a balk, much to the chagrin of the hosts. The next Seahawk batter also drew a walk, but Wensley induced back-to-back ground balls to erase the baserunners and end the inning. Following the controversial call, the hosts picked up their pitcher in the fifth, capitalizing on an error and a wild pitch to load the bases with nobody out. Leonard added a baserunner with a walk, but not before another wild pitch brought Julian Jaume (Brooklyn, N.Y.) home with the fifth Colonel run of the day. The following batter, Salve had a chance to shift the momentum with a double play, but after nabbing the force out at home, the throw to first found its way into right field, which brought Keller around to score. Carvalho walked to again load the bases, this time with just one out, but Curry was unable to tack on any more runs as Seahawk reliever Luke Lombardi (Allendale, N.J.) worked his way out of the jam. After Wensley halted a threat of his own in the sixth, the Colonels kept the momentum squarely in their favor, as each of the first three batters reached base to start a rally in the sixth. A strikeout kept the runners in place and gave the Seahawks some hope, but Leonard had other thoughts as the freshman crushed a grand slam out to left. With an eight-run lead, Phillip Ledwith (Old Saybrook, Conn.) came in to work the top of the seventh, striking out three of the four batters he faced, before three straight Colonel hits in the bottom of the frame closed out the game with the hosts taking game two by a score of 12-2.

Ketterer and Leonard each reached base three times with a pair of hits and a walk, while the latter drove in four runs with his first collegiate grand slam. The loss squanders multi-hit games from O'Malley and Ketch, while each of them collect a run scored. Lombardi, Colin Trahon (Raynham, Mass.), and Brett Wilkes (Franklin Lakes, N.J.) all surrendered runs out of the Salve bullpen, but the loss goes to Michael Mathews (West Hartford, Conn., 4-2), despite the Seahawk starter striking out five over four innings of work. Wensley (2-8) earns his second win of the season giving up just two runs on four hits over six innings, before Ledwith tossed a no-hit seventh.

With the win, the Colonels stave off elimination, as a pair of losses would have made it mathematically impossible for Curry to qualify for the upcoming CCC Baseball tournament. Though the Colonels are still yet to clinch a postseason berth, the win keeps their hopes alive. Curry now looks forward to the double-header between Gordon College and Nichols College in Dudley, Mass. on Monday, April 29. If the Bison sweep the Fighting Scots, the Colonels will have earned a trip to the tournament.

Though their conference fate remains uncertain, the Colonels will get back to action as they head to Salem State for a 3:30 p.m. start on Tuesday, April 30. Salve Regina also returns to the diamond on Tuesday, closing out their regular season slate with a non-conference double-header at Worcester State University. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

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