MANSFIELD, Conn. –The future success of the Eastern Connecticut State University baseball program is predicated upon a talented – but young -- pitching staff.

Wednesday night against a team ranked among the national Top 20 in hitting, that young staff experienced some growing pains as the Warriors were overwhelmed by Suffolk University, 15-3, in a non-conference game at the Eastern Baseball Stadium.

Behind a 17-hit attack, Suffolk (18-5) improved to 7-1 in its last eight games, defeating Eastern (13-6) for the third time in the last four meetings between the programs. The loss is the first at home for Eastern after victories in its first five games at the Eastern Baseball Stadium.

Suffolk victimized seven Eastern pitchers. Five of them are freshmen and another was making his first appearance of the season.

While the Rams were improving their season batting average of .336, Eastern had limited answers against senior starting righty Kyle Turner (2-2) and two subsequent relievers. Turner fanned eight and allowed only three hits and one run before departing after  seven solid innings. Eastern's lone bright spot came against freshman reliever Charles Batchelder when junior centerfielder Alex Zachary (Enfield) blasted his team-leading third home run of the season – a two-run, two-out shot. Eastern's only run against Turner came in the second when Zachary earned a leadoff walk and later scored on senior catcher Tim Budd's (Cheshire) sacrifice fly to right.

A pitching staff featuring a strikeout-to-walk ratio of better than 2-to-1 prior to the game issued 11 walks and hit three batters. Five of those batters eventually scored.

The 3-4-5-6 hitters in the Suffolk order combined for 11 hits, eight RBI and seven runs scored.

Ranked second in New England, Eastern visits No.-3 ranked Amherst College Thursday at 4 p.m. in a non-conference game.