Western New England Takes Down Gordon, 17-2, to Clinch Spot in CCC Championship Series

Western New England remains unbeaten through three CCC Tournament games

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (May 7, 2018) – The third-seeded Western New England University baseball team secured a spot in next weekend's CCC Tournament championship series with a 17-2 victory over sixth-seeded Gordon College on Monday afternoon at Trelease Park. 

Western New England (29-13) will either travel to top-seeded Salve Regina University, or host fourth-seeded Endicott College in the best-of-three series, which will take place on Friday and Saturday May 11-12. Gordon's season ends at 18-18.

Top Performers
• Junior outfielder Joe Cassella (Wallingford, Conn.) went 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBI, while sophomore Jamie Schofield (Darien, Conn.) reached base four times out of the leadoff spot, as he posted a 2-for-3 effort with two walks, two RBI and two runs scored.
• Junior Alex Loparco (Riverside, Conn.) also got on base four times with two hits and two walks to go with one RBI and three runs, while classmate Ben LaCroix (Branford, Conn.) drove in three runs with a 2-for-3 showing.

• Gordon junior Christian Hodge (Waltham, Mass.) and sophomore Joseph Mack (East Longmeadow, Mass.) had two hits and one RBI each for the Fighting Scots.

Game Review
The Golden Bears put four runs on the board in the first inning and never looked back. Loparco doubled to left center with one out and came in to score on a Gordon throwing error, before LaCroix recorded a two-out, RBI single through the right side of the infield. Junior Aaron Rios (Stratford, Conn.) came up later in the inning and ended Gordon freshman Mark Gadaleta's (Chappaqua, N.Y.) outing with a two-run single to left field.

Western New England erupted for seven more runs in the second inning to open up an 11-0 advantage. The first three batters reached base as Schofield singled, Loparco walked and junior Erik Lacaire (Worcester, Mass.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Cassella produced a two-run single to left field, and LaCroix followed with a two-run double to right center to make it 8-0. After the Golden Bears loaded the bases again later in the inning, Schofield delivered a two-run single and Loparco added an RBI single to cap the outburst.

The Fighting Scots plated single runs in the fourth and fifth innings, but Western New England restored its 11-run cushion (13-2) in the seventh when senior Jared Rosenblatt (Avon, Conn.) and sophomore Kevin Johnson (Waterford, Conn.) both recorded RBI base hits.

The Golden Bears weren't done, however, as they tacked on four more runs with the help of three bases-loaded walks in the eighth.

Notes
• Six Golden Bears recorded multiple hits against the Fighting Scots, while five players drove in multiple runs.
• Gordon pitchers issued 11 walks to Western New England batters.
• Western New England has scored 45 runs in three CCC Tournament contests.