BENNINGTON, Vt. – In the first of a three-game New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) baseball series, Daniel Webster College defeated Southern Vermont College 18-4 Monday afternoon at Bill Epstein Field.
The Eagles improve to 10-15 on the year, 6-8 in conference play. SVC drops to 5-8 in league play, 11-17 overall on the season.
Southern Vt. sophomore Richard Rios (Pico Rivera, Calif.) went 2-4 with two RBIs and a run scored, both hits being doubles. Junior right fielder Roland Hernandez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) was 2-4 with a run scored while junior shortstop Chris Nicastro Jr. (Kenilworth, N.J.) had a 2-3 showing at the plate and stole a base. SVC sophomore RJ Pingitore (Amsterdam, N.Y.) was 1-3 with an RBI and two stolen bases.
Senior first baseman Erick Bourdeau (Alton Bay, N.H.) was 3-5 for DWC, knocking in five runs and scoring twice with the help of two doubles. Junior shortstop Dan Ierardi (Dunstable, Mass.) scored four runs and knocked in two others while stealing two bases, and junior third baseman Kyle Brigham (Hudson, N.H.) missed the cycle by a home run, going 3-6 with a walk, two RBIs and three runs scored.
Eagle sophomore Jon Merritt (Charlestown, N.H.) picked up his first collegiate win from the mound (1-0), going 6.2 innings while surrendering four runs and striking out six SVC batters. Mountaineer freshman Joshua Hay (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) suffered the loss (3-4).
Daniel Webster didn't take long to get on the scoreboard, scoring a pair in the first on a shot by Bourdeau out to right center that found its way through the fence for the ground rule double. The Eagles added two more in the second for a 4-0 advantage and then tacked on another in the fourth when Ierardi tagged a sacrifice fly to deep right.
The Mountaineers got themselves on the board in the bottom of the fourth, cutting their deficit to 5-3. A deep fly by freshman Nathan Cahoone (Westerly, R.I.) scored Hernandez for the first run of the innings, and Rios then ripped a double down the line in left to plate two more.
DWC's bats kept producing as the visitors scored five more runs in the next two innings to take a comfortable 10-3 lead before SVC added its fourth run in the seventh. That would be it for the hosts' offense, however, as the Eagles put the game out of reach with a six-run eighth.
The Mountaineers are next slated to visit Union College on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. non-conference first pitch. Daniel Webster has Tuesday off to prepare for a home doubleheader on Wednesday that concludes the season series with SVC, scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.