Baseball Swept in MASCAC Twinbill

FITCHBURG, Mass. -- The Fitchburg State University baseball team swept Bridgewater State University in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) doubleheader on Monday afternoon.

The Falcons blanked the Bears, 2-0, in the opener before completing the sweep with an 8-2 decision in game two.

Fitchburg improves to 13-14 on the season and 6-2 in the MASCAC, while Bridgewater slips to 9-15 overall and 2-6 in conference play.

Evan Meeledy tossed a complete game, two-hit shutout for the Falcons in the opener. Meeledy (2-2) did not issue walk and fanned five.

Meeledy retired 21 of the 23 batters he faced. He gave up a two-out single to Anthony Licciardello in the second inning and a two-out double to Reed Pike in the seventh.

Connor Birch pitched well in the loss for the Bears. Birch (0-2) went the distance allowing two runs on four hits with a walk and six strikeouts. Birch did not give up a hit until Brendan Cutler doubled with two outs in the fourth
 
The Green and Gold got on the board in the bottom of the sixth when Nate Littman brought home Andrew Mooney from third with an RBI ground out. The next batter, Derrick Frazier, made it a 2-0 game with an RBI double to deep centerfield.
 
The Bears opened the scoring in game two as Scott O' Brien walked to lead off the game, moved to second on a ground out and scored on Ryan Feeney's RBI single to center.

The Fitchburg State offense exploded for six runs in the bottom of the second. Javier Lozada punched a two-RBI single into the outfield before Littman drove home another run with an infield single. After a walk loaded the bases, Frazier cleared them with a double down the right field line to make it a 6-1 game.

In the top of the fourth, Bridgewater State took advantage of some shaky defense to chip into the deficit when an error at shortstop allowed Feeney to score an unearned from third base.

The Green and Gold added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth when Steven Drury doubled in Lozada before being brought home on a single from Frazier, his sixth RBI of the day.

Tom Gammell went five strong innings to pick up the win for the Falcons in game two. Gammell (2-0) allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits with two walks and a strikeout.

Tyler Smith work a scoreless sixth and seventh inning to close out the game. Smith retired six of the eight batters he faced including a pair of strikeouts.

Bridgewater State starter Kevin Bresciani took the loss on the hill for the Bears. Bresciani (0-2) gave up six runs on five hits and three walks in an inning and two-thirds.

Lozada and Frazier each went 2-for-4 at the plate, knocking in two and four runs, respectively, to highlight the Fitchburg offense.

In upcoming action, the Falcons take on Fisher College on Wednesday night at seven, while the Bears entertain UMass Dartmouth on Thursday afternoon at 3:30.