Bridgewater State Keeps Winning in NCAA Baseball Tournament

Bears Win Again Behind Billotte's Mound Effort

By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise (Brockton)

HARWICH, Mass. -- Halfway through the double-elimination NCAA Div. 3 New England Regional, there are only two undefeated baseball teams remaining.

Bridgewater State University, the No. 8 seed in the eight-team field, is one of them after getting back-to-back complete-game pitching performances.

The Bears advanced in the winner’s bracket on Thursday afternoon with an 8-5 victory over fifth-seeded Rhode Island College at Whitehouse Field, leaving them a win away from moving into the championship round.

BSU (25-15) squares off against second-seeded Western New England (40-9) today at 4:30 p.m. with the winner needing just one more victory on Saturday or Sunday to claim the regional title.

The Bears, making their first tournament appearance since 2004, are playing their best baseball of the season at the right time of the year. BSU, which won the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference tourney to get into the NCAAs, has nine victories in its last 10 games and has gone 15-4 since the middle of April.

“They turned the corner when they went on a four-game sweep on the last weekend of the MASCAC season,” said Coach Rick Smith. “Their play elevated after that in the MASCAC tournament, and they’ve been playing very well ever since.”

One day after Corey Batista went the distance to defeat top-seeded Tufts University, another Massasoit Community College transfer, Dave Billotte, pitched a complete game to stop the Anchormen’s winning streak at seven.

Thanks to Batista and Billotte, the Bears will resume the tourney today with a fresh bullpen when junior Joshua Ferreira (2-1 in eight appearances) faces Western New England.

“If you were trying to draw it up, this is the best way it could have worked out,” said Smith. “That’s the whole key – minimize the amount of pitchers that you use. The deeper you get with the more pitching you have, the better off you are.”

Billotte scattered nine hits while improving to 3-3 as he got plenty of support from the Bears with Batista (two hits, including a three-run home run) and Keane Costa (two hits, two RBI) leading the offense.

BSU jumped out to a 6-0 lead and held an 8-2 advantage before RIC (22-19) scored three times with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Billotte, who threw 147 pitches for his third complete game, stranded 11 runners against the Anchormen, who were 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position.

“Batista threw a complete game (Wednesday), which was awesome for us, and I wanted to do the same,” said Billotte. “The less pitching we can use in the first couple of games, the better off we’re going to be.”

Said Smith: “If you look at all his statistics throughout the year, he pitches himself into jams sometimes, but he always keeps working out of them. He’s a gutsy kid who throws strikes and doesn’t really get flustered about anything.”

The Bears took a 1-0 lead in the first when sophomore Tyler Dennis of Stoughton doubled home classmate David Pierce of East Bridgewater, who reached on an infield hit.

No. 9 batter John Garabedian made it 2-0 with a two-out double to left-center field, scoring Jose Polanco, who walked.

BSU took control in the sixth when Costa singled home Pierce, who had walked and went to second when Ian Williams of Taunton walked, and Batista laced his fourth homer of the season to left field for a 6-0 advantage. Batista also made a sensational diving stop at shortstop to end the eighth inning.

“Batista’s just the man,’’ said Smith. “He’s doing it both ways. That play he made at shortstop, the three-run home run, you can’t coach that stuff. That’s just talent. Good coaches have good players, and we fortunately have very good players.”

After RIC scored single runs in the sixth and seventh innings, BSU answered with an unearned run in the eighth before Costa’s RBI single in the ninth. The Anchormen got a bases-loaded double by Ronnie Bracchi in the ninth to close within three runs.

The Bears hope to keep riding the wave of momentum for another day to get into the championship round this weekend.

“(Today’s) the pivot game,’’ said Smith. “You get through (today) and somebody’s got to beat you twice to win this and take it away from you.”

Said Billotte: “We’re on a hot streak right now and we’re just trying to keep it going. We’re clicking and everybody is doing their thing.”