One of the keys for No. 11 Boston College baseball during last weekend’s historic series sweep of North Carolina was getting the bats going. BC’s lineup came to life in Chapel Hill, averaging eight runs per game over the weekend.
The Eagles continued that trend and kept the bats hot when they welcomed UMass Lowell to Harrington Athletics Village Wednesday evening.
Receiving production from the whole lineup, BC (28–12, 12–9 Atlantic Coast) cruised past the River Hawks (12–26, 5–10 America East) 9–3. All but one player in the Eagles’ starting lineup recorded a hit, and five different players tallied an RBI.
“I was really happy with the effort, top to bottom, today,” BC head coach Mike Gambino said.
The Eagles first got on the board in the third inning, putting up four runs. Vince Cimini, Cohl Mercado, and Peter Burns all reached base on singles to start the frame before Joe Vetrano sliced a ball to left field with one out for a bases-clearing double. Vetrano came around to score three batters later when Barry Walsh reached first base after being hit by a pitch.
BC tacked on to its lead an inning later when Travis Honeyman lined a two-run home run over the left field fence. Cimini scored on the blast after leading off the inning with a walk.
“I mean, to get a ball out tonight with the wind blowing in like that—that ball was annihilated,” Gambino said of Honeyman’s big swing.
Sophomore Matthew Nunan started on the bump for BC and delivered a solid outing. Nunan tossed four shutout innings, allowing just two hits and fanning five batters—bouncing back from his three earned runs he let up against UConn his last time out.
“[Nunan was] mixing his pitches, pounding the zone,” Gambino said. “He was great today.”
UMass Lowell got a run back in the top of the fifth inning to make it 6–1 when Trey Brown scored Fritz Genther on an RBI groundout. Genther finished 2-for-4 with two runs batted in.
BC posted two more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to extend its lead to 8–1. Walsh rocketed a double into the left-center field gap to drive in Patrick Roche, and the Eagles’ center fielder later crossed home plate on a Burns bases-loaded walk.
“Barry swung it great again today,” Gambino said. “I’m happy with the at-bats, and I thought we had hard-hit balls.”
Kyle Wolff, who entered the game to replace Vetrano after he sustained an injury, added an RBI in the seventh inning after yet another bases-loaded walk. Vetrano had exited the contest after getting beamed by a pitch.
“I think he’s doing okay,” Gambino said of Vetrano. “Right now, I think it hurts, but I don’t think he’s injured.”
Charlie Coon and Sean Hard each hurled a shutout inning in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, before Luke Delongchamp surrendered two runs in a shaky eighth inning outing.
BC called on A. J. Colarusso to finish the game and preserve the 9–3 score. Colarusso threw 1.2 innings with four strikeouts to put the finishing touches on the Eagles’ effort.
“You’re playing good teams in midweek [games], and you got to continue to add wins to your resume,” Gambino said. “RPI’s a thing, and not only that but—you just want to continue to play and grow and get better as a ballclub.”
