Gordon shakes off a tough sweep at the hands of Western New England and improves to 15-7 overall and 4-2 in conference. Eastern Nazarene drops to marks of 12-11 and 0-4.
Game One: Eastern Nazarene 4 – 5 Gordon
ENC sophomore Brent Houle (Westfield, Mass.) and Gordon freshman Connor Rogotzke (Altamont,
N.Y.) both struggled with command early in the game, but neither team was able to take advantage of base runners. Gordon left four runners on base during the first two innings despite not collecting a hit.
Neither was able to register a base knock until the top of the fourth inning when Cam Fiorentino (Uxbridge, Mass.) scalded a one-out pitch over the wall in right center for a 1-0 lead.
Gordon tied the game in the second half of the fourth inning as the bottom of the lineup got a rally going. Chris Leavitt (Bridgewater, Mass.) singled a ball over second base and stole second a few pitches later to put a runner in scoring position with only one out. Matt Moffat (Stratford, Conn.) walked and Christian Hodge (Waltham, Mass.) singled to load the bases. Daniel Quint (Wells, Maine) drove in the tying run with a sacrifice to score Leavitt from third, but that would be all the Scots could manage in the frame.
The Lions broke through in the top of the fifth inning with Joe Commesso (Marshfield, Mass.) getting things started with a leadoff walk. Justin Wagner (Oklahoma City, Okla.) set up his twin brother Jeremy with a sacrifice to push Commesso over to second. Jeremy Wagner singled into center to score the run and break the 1-1 deadlock.
Zach Carmody (Babylon, N.Y.) reached on a fielder's choice as Jeremy Wagner was able to beat out the throw from Rogotzke to the plate. Fiorentino made it a 4-1 lead with a single in front of the feet of Addison Tarr (Oxnard, Calif.) to easily plate Carmody.
Gordon was able to cut into the ENC advantage in the bottom of the sixth inning with two more runs. Leavitt kept his streak alive with another single through the hole on the left side. Moffat walked for the second time in the game, fighting off three pitches in the process. Houle got Hodge to pop up, but an error in the outfield prolonged the inning. Gordon scored once on the error and again on a double by Tarr to make it a 4-3 game entering the final inning.
Rogotzke cut down the Lions in order to give the Scots once last chance at a comeback win. Despite the heart of the order coming to bat in the seventh, two of the first three batters flied out to left field.
Leavitt kept the hope alive with his third single of the game and Moffat sent a 1-0 pitch down the line in left to tie the game. Alex Smith (Wethersfield, Conn.) scored the game-tying run.
Hodge completed the improbable comeback with a one-base knock into centerfield on the first pitch he saw.
Nick Story (Gilbert, Ariz.) took the loss for the Lions in two-thirds of an inning of work. Rogotzke allowed four hits and four runs, while striking out three batters. Houle took the no decision in 5.2 innings.
Game Two: Eastern Nazarene 1 – 10 Gordon
The Fighting Scots carried momentum into a bizarre game two, striking early and often in a blowout victory.
Moffat got the scoring started in the second with an RBI single before the Scots broke the floodgates open in the third. The Fighting Scots scored four runs in the third and three more in the fourth to take a whopping 8-0 advantage at the midway point of the contest.
Things went south for the Lions in the bottom of the third after a couple of heated interactions on the field. Gordon took advantage with three straight hits to begin the third, including a first-pitch double by Dean Demers (Sandy Hook, Conn.). Smith drove Demers and Ryan Paulsen (Latham, N.Y.) with a single into shallow center to make it a 3-0 game.
Jeremy Jackson (Waco, Texas) grounded into a potential double play ball, but the second baseman dropped the ball on the tag to make all runners safe on the play. Leavitt walked to load the bases, still with no outs in the inning. Gordon kept the pressure on, forcing an airmailed throw into center to score another run and Hodge reached on a fielder's choice later in the inning to score Jackson for a 5-0 advantage.
Another error in the bottom of the fourth led to more scoring for the Fighting Scots. Gordon loaded the bases on a hit, walk and error before Leavitt fouled out to deep right to plate Demers. Travis Benoit (Worcester, Mass.) tacked on two more with a double over the head of the centerfielder to give Gordon an eight-run advantage.
Doubles by Smith and Hodge added another two tallies on the scoreboard in right in the sixth.
Carmody scored the lone run of the game in the seventh after leading off the inning with a double down the line in left. The third baseman reached third on a passed ball before scoring on a groundout.
Gordon starter Derek Hudson (Hudson, N.H.) was yeoman-like on the mound, going all seven innings with seven strikeouts. Hudson earned his second win of the year and allowed no earned runs on three hits.
Fiorentino fell to .500 on the season at 3-3 after only lasting 3.1 innings and giving up seven runs.
On Deck:
Gordon stays in conference action on Friday when they host Nichols for a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. The Lions stay on the road on Thursday for a 7 p.m. game against Lesley.
Quick Hits:
- After beginning the season 1-for-24 in Florida, Leavitt has been one of Gordon's hottest hitters since returning North. The rookie catcher/second baseman has gone 12-for-30 back home and has hit safely in all but two games.
- Demers broke an 0-for-17 stretch with his rocket double in the third inning of game two.
- Hudson has been Gordon's third most consistent pitcher this spring with a 3.96 ERA in 25 innings of work.
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