Baseball Advances to MASCAC Tournament Semifinal with 10-7 Win Over Fitchburg State

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- #2 Bridgewater State University posted a 10-7 win over #6 Fitchburg State University in the quarterfinal round of the 2023 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Baseball Tournament on Thursday afternoon at Alumni Park.

With the win, Bridgewater advances to the winner's bracket on Friday afternoon as the Bears (30-11) will take on top-seeded Framingham State University at three o'clock. The Falcons (19-20) will face #5 Massachusetts Maritime Academy in an elimination game on Friday morning at 11:00 AM. The remainder of the tournament will take place at Framingham's Bowditch Field.

Kyle Suraci (Clinton, Conn.) belted a grand slam and righthander Matthew Seavey (North Attleboro, Mass.) pitched into the eighth inning to lead Bridgewater State to the win.

Seavey (4-2) allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits over 7 2/3 innings with two walks and two strikeouts. He also hit four batters.

The Bears loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the third inning as Scott Emerson (Peabody, Mass.) singled, Cam James (Ipswich, Mass.) walked and Riley Thornell (Wareham, Mass.) was hit by a pitch. After a line out, Suraci launched a grand slam over the left-centerfield fence to give the hosts a 4-0 lead. The home run marked Suraci's first of the season.

Zachary Malek (Schenectady, N.Y.) answered for the Falcons with a two-run homer in the top of the fourth to cut the deficit to 4-2.

Back-to-back bases loaded walks by Malek and Jacob Hurrell (Haverhill, Mass.) with two outs in the top of the fifth knotted the score at 4-4. The Falcons also had a runner cut down at the plate in the frame by BSU right fielder Jay Wladkowski (Norwood, Mass.).

A key Fitchburg throwing error led to three unearned runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Suraci and Nolan DeAndrade (Bridgewater, Mass.) led off the frame with back-to-back walks. Two batters later, both runners moved into scoring position on a ground out. Emerson then reached on a throwing error allowing bother runners to score. After Emerson stole second, Wladkowski beat out an infield single with the fleet-footed Emerson never hesitating around third and beating the throw home to give the Bears a 7-4 lead.

The Falcons got one back in the eighth to close the gap to 7-5. Nolan Hills (Danvers, Mass.) singled to lead off the inning and was replaced on the base paths by pinch runner Derek Milliken (South Easton, Mass.). Milliken then advanced to second on a passed ball, to third on another passed ball, and scored on a two-out, pinch hit RBI single by Greg Reed (Saugus, Mass.). BSU closer Tyler Dasilva-Medeiros (Taunton, Mass.) came on with tying run at the plate and ended the frame with a strikeout.

The Bears sent nine batters to the plate, strung together four hits, and stole three bases in a three-run bottom of the eighth to extend their lead to 10-5. Emerson knocked in a run with an RBI single, while James connected for a two-run single.

Dasilva-Medeiros gave up a pair of unearned runs in the ninth as he recorded his ninth save of the season and the 20th of his career.

Emerson (2-4, 2SB, 3R, RBI), Wladkowski (2-5, RBI) and Sean Goudey (Weymouth, Mass.) paced the Bears' ten-hit attack with two hits apiece. Goudey singled twice in four at bats, stole two bases and scored a run.

Matthew Smith (Flanders, N.J.) was the only Falcon with multiple hits as he went 2-for-3 and scored two runs.

Fitchburg lefty Joseph Hartnett (North Attleboro, Mass.) suffered the loss on the mound. Hartnett (3-1) gave up seven runs (four earned) on five hits over six innings with five walks and five strikeouts. He also hit two batters.

Notes: Bridgewater State hit the 30-win mark for the second straight season and for the sixth time in program history….Dasilva-Medeiros is tied for third among the Division III leaders with his nine saves.