MANSFIELD, Conn. – The Eastern Connecticut State University baseball team got solid pitching from three veterans and sophomore shortstop Christian Budzik (Cromwell) had three extra-base hits and drove in two runs as the Warriors gained a split of Saturday's Little East Conference doubleheader with a 7-1 victory at the Eastern Baseball Stadium.

In the first game, UMass Dartmouth (18-12, 8-4 Little East)  had all of its hits and all but one of its runs in the first two innings – scoring four times in the second inning after there were two out and none on – as the Corsairs posted a 6-2 victory.

By winning the second game,  Eastern (14-15, 6-6 Little East) is guaranteed an opportunity to defend last year's LEC tournament title by finishing among the top six teams in the final conference standings. The Warriors visit Keene State College Friday for a noon LEC doubleheader which ends the regular season.

With the split, UMass Dartmouth drops into a tie for second place with Rhode Island College – both teams a game behind conference leader University of Southern Maine. Friday, the Corsairs visit Southern Maine and Rhode Island visits Plymouth State University for noon doubleheaders which close out the regular season.

Eastern's five outgoing seniors and their parents were recognized in-between games of Saturday's doubleheader. (Photo by Christine Edison)

In the second game Saturday, senior righty Tyler Cyr (Bristol) and senior lefty Matt D'Orsi (West Hartford) allowed only one run and eight hits through seven innings before All-New England junior righty Adam Merritt (Seymour) closed out the win with the final two shutout innings. Cyr gave up only six hits and no walks while fanning four before giving way to D'Orsi with two out in the fifth and Eastern leading 3-1. D'Orsi (2-3) fanned four and walked one and gave up two hits over 2 1/3 innings.

In the second game, Eastern moved out to a 6-1 lead by scoring three runs in the sixth on four hits and an infield error, chasing UMass Dartmouth  junior righty George Bent (Barnstable, MA) in the process. After doubling in his first two at-bats, Budzik tripled in the first two runs of the inning and later scored on sophomore rightfielder Pat Sirois' (Cromwell) two-out single to right.

In the opener, junior righty Steve Colella won his fifth game in six decisions, stopping the Warriors on six hits and two runs while fanning five and walking three. Colella gave up only two hits after the Warriors struck for two runs in the first, and freshman righty Matt Cronin  – the fourth UMD pitcher – stranded two runners with a pair of game-ending swinging strikeouts in the ninth.

Eastern junior righty Patrick O'Neill (Thomaston) threw six hitless innings after the Corsairs scored five times in their first two at-bats on eight hits and one Eastern error in losing his fifth game in six decisions. Trailing 2-1, UMass scored four times on six hits in the second inning. No. 9 hitter Josh O'Neill  broke a 1-1 tie with an RBI single and rode home on senior centerfielder Ryan Medeiros' fifth home run of the year.

On the day, Budzik freshman first baseman D.J. Scavone (Auburn, MA) and Sirois all drove in two runs. Budzik had two doubles and a triple and Scavone two doubles. O'Neill, senior catcher Cory DeMedeiros  and freshman  rightfielder Ervin Kantardzic all had three hits. O'Neill and Medeiros each scored twice and Medeiros finished with two RBI.

In between games, Eastern's five graduating seniors and their parents were honored. This year's seniors are Cyr, D'Orsi, outfielders Kyle Hart (Guilford) and Joe Perez (North Branford) and infielder Corey Keane (Tolland). In the doubleheader, Keane had three hits and a walk and RBI and stole two bases; Perez had two hits and scored two runs and Hart walked once.