Baseball edges Clark University, 2-1

WORCESTER, Mass. – Visiting Bridgewater State University used an 11-hit attack and got an RBI double from Tyler Dennis (Stoughton, Mass.) to knock off Clark University, 2-1, in non-league baseball action on Wednesday afternoon at Granger Field.

The Bears improved to 13-11 with the win, while Clark, playing the final home game of its 2011 season, slips to 15-17 overall.

Bridgewater got excellent pitching from all four of its arms, led by starter Brian Guillotte (New Bedford, Mass.), who went the first five innings and allowed just two hits and one earned run.

The Bears scored an unusual run off of Cougar starter Andrew LeBlanc (Farmington, Conn.) in the top of the first. With two outs, Joshua Ferreira (Fall River, Mass.) singled deep into the hole at short. The next batter, Ian Williams (Taunton, Mass.) sent a shallow fly ball into shot right field. Two Clark fielders weren't able to make the play, and Ferreira, running from the crack of the bat, scored before Williams was tagged out in a rundown.

The Cougars evened the score in the bottom of the second when Kevin Kopec (Katonah, N.Y.) blasted a two out, solo homerun.

Kopec's hit was Clark's last for awhile, as Guillotte and relievers Jim Balboni (Townsend, Mass.), Jeff Puopolo (Brockton, Mass.) and Ferreira combined to retired 19 of the next 22 batters without allowing a hit.

Meanwhile, the Bridgewater State offense pushed across the game-winning run in the top of the seventh when Matt Greenberg (Norwell, Mass.) singled to right field off of Cougar reliever Dan Vladimer (Lexington, Mass.).  Greenberg stole second and then scored on Dennis' ensuing double.

Clark looked poised to even the game when Peter Lewis (Gardiner, Maine) led off the bottom of the ninth with a triple to the gap in right. Ferreira, however, retired the next three batters with a strikeout and then made a great play on a liner right back at him, before getting a pop up to second to end the game and collect his third save of the season.

Balboni, who pitched a perfect sixth inning, picks up the win for the Bears, while Vladimer takes the loss after tossing two-thirds of an inning, yielding two hits and the game-winning run.

In addition to earning the save, Ferreira had two hits, as did Williams and Greenberg.

Clark will wrap up its 2011 season on Friday with a road trip to Wesleyan, while the Bears visit UMass-Dartmouth on Thursday.