Box Score MANSFIELD, Conn. – Senior leftfielder Nik Ververis (Plainfield) collected his team-leading seventh multiple-hit game of the year and junior righty Tyler Cyr (Bristol) pitched the first six innings for his first win of the year as the Eastern Connecticut State University baseball team routed Purchase College, 11-3, in a non-conference game Wednesday afternoon at the Eastern Baseball Stadium.
At right: Shortstop Brendan Lynch throws out Teofilo Ramirez for the final out of the second inning in Wednesday's 11-3 win over Purchase College at the Eastern Baseball Stadium. Lynch recorded four assists as the Warriors played perfect defense. (Photo by Liam Murphy)
Ranked seventh in New England, Eastern (9-4) won for the sixth time in its last seven games and improved to 3-0 all-time against Purchase (5-7), which has lost five straight.
Batting .419 (13-for-31) in his last eight games, Ververis singled and scored in a two-run first inning as the No. 2 hitter in the lineup, knocked in a run with a single in a three-run second, and doubled in a run and scored in a four-run fourth that upped the Warriors' lead to 10-2.
Senior leadoff hitter Brendan Lynch (Wethersfield) walked and scored in the first and fourth innings, and drove in the first run of the second with a sacrifice fly.
Batting third in the order, senior infielder Mike Vaccarelli (Wolcott) had two hits and a sacrifice fly, drove in two runs and scored one, and junior cleanup hitter Corey Keane (Tolland) drove in two runs with a single and sacrifice fly, and scored once. Making his second straight start after missing four, junior rightfielder Kyle Hart (Guilford) contributed an RBI single and a double.
In his second career start (23rd appearance), Cyr pitched the first six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits, fanning four, walking two and hitting two. In his second career appearance, freshman righty Ron Buchetto (Clinton) allowed a hit and run with two strikeouts over two innings, and senior righty Ben Richards (Northbridge, MA) struck out two in a 1-2-3 ninth.
Trailing 5-0, Purchase got two back in the third on senior rightfielder Leandro Francisco's double and a two-run single by freshman leftfielder Dan Lombardo. Freshman first baseman Michael Piekarczyk, senior centerfielder Aryn Giddens, and Lombardo each had two hits for the Panthers, with Lombardo scoring once and driving in a run.
Four Purchase relievers limited Eastern to one run on four hits over the final five innings after the Warriors scored six times on eight hits and six walks against junior starter Frank Fantino .
Eastern hosts Salve Regina University Thursday at 4 p.m.
