Wheaton 5, WPI 3 - NEWMAC Tournament - Game #7

Box Score  

Worcester, MA --- Second-seeded and nationally-ranked Wheaton got a strong outing from starter Nick Kostaras (North Attleboro, MA) en route to a 5-3 win over WPI in NEWMAC Tournament day three action at WPI's Class of 1893 Field.  Kostaras, who struck out eight Engineers over six innings of work, improved to 4-1 on the year with the victory.

With the win, Wheaton exacted revenge from a doubleheader sweep at the hands of the Engineers last Saturday in Norton. The Lyons remain alive in the NEWMAC Tournament and will face Babson in Saturday's third game at 4pm at WPI. Top-seeded WPI fell to 22-11 with the loss and was bounced from tournament play.

The Engineers, playing at home but as the visiting club, struck first in the top half of the second inning. With one out in the inning, right fielder Matt Moreau (Manchester, NH) sent a double into the right-center gap to give WPI its first runner in scoring position. Mitch McClune (Pembroke, MA) followed with a clean single up the middle that sent Moreau plateward with the game's first run.

Wheaton tied the score in the bottom of the third, getting a one-out infield single from Nick Pecora (Highland Park, NJ) who moved to second on a throwing error on the play.  A Jeff Lieneck (Foxboro, MA) sacrifice bunt moved Pecora to third before Sean Munley (Trenton, NJ) picked up the Lyons' second infield single of the inning, a high-bouncing grounder into the hole between first and second, to drive home the tying run.

The Lyons tacked on three more in the fourth, chasing WPI starter Nolan Murphy (Shrewsbury, MA) from the game. Hal Landers (Salem, NH) led off the inning with a walk and Hadi Raad (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY) singled to left, setting the Lyons up with two on and nobody out. Pecora was hit by a pitch to load the bases, prompting WPI to go to the bullpen with Wheaton threatening. Thomas Whiting (Farmington Hills, MI) came on in relief and allowed a sacrifice fly to Lienick that gave Wheaton a 2-1 edge. Munley followed by driving the first pitch he saw into the gap in right-center, plating two runners for a 4-1 Lyons lead.

The Engineers chipped away at the lead in the top of the fifth. Cody McGregor (Westfield, MA) led off the inning with a single to center, moving to second on a fielder's choice. With two out in the inning, Mark Dignum (Albany, NY) singled to left, driving in McGregor for WPI's second run.

Wheaton pushed across an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth, extending its lead to three runs. Eric Laliberte (Nashua, NH) reached via a hit-by-pitch with one out, moving to second on a Lienick single to left. Munley followed with a bloop single to center, driving Laliberte home with a 5-2 Wheaton lead.

WPI answered in the top of the eighth, scoring one run on three straight singles from Nick Bean (Middleboro, MA), Scott McNee (Falmouth, MA) and Moreau, cutting the lead to 5-3.  Reliever Josh Simmons extinguished the threat by getting the last three outs in the eighth, and tossing a scoreless ninth inning to earn his eighth save of the season.

Munley was 3-for-4 with four RBIs to lead the Lyons at the plate, while Pecora and Paul Malaguti (Andover, MA) each had two hits for the victors. Moreau was also 3-for-4 for WPI, which received hits from nine different players but fell two runs short of moving on in the tournament. Murphy (5-2) took the loss for the Engineers, who received 4 2/3 innings of effective relief from Whiting that kept the game close in the late innings.

Story by Ray Cotrufo '98 - WPI Sports Information