Baseball Extends Winning Streak to 12 with 5-2 MASCAC Win Over Salem

By Jim Fenton

SALEM, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University baseball team ran its winning streak to 12 with a road victory Tuesday afternoon.

Four pitchers combined on a three-hitter as the Bears downed Salem State University, 5-2.

BSU has not lost since the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference opener on March 24 three weeks ago.

BSU (17-5, 11-1 MASCAC) built a 5-0 lead before the Vikings (10-12, 6-6) scored their runs in the bottom of the ninth.

Senior Danny Jasmin (East Meadow, N.Y.) was the winning pitcher, allowing a hit with six strikeouts in five innings.

The lone hit allowed by Jasmin (2-0) came with two outs in the fifth when freshman Jonny Payne (Seekonk, Mass.) singled up the middle.

Senior Matt Kustigian (Charlton, Mass.) worked the next two innings, giving up a hit, and senior CJ Hess (Providence, R.I.) and sophomore Chase Beach (Orleans, Mass.) each pitched an inning with Hess striking out three.

BSU outhit the Vikings, 8-3, with sophomore Cam Beltramini (Hanson, Mass.) going 2-for-4 with two RBI and junior Benjamin Sepeck (Whitman, Mass.) also getting a pair of hits.

The Bears opened a 2-0 lead in the first when junior Rylan Secovich (Southwick, Mass.) struck out but reached on a passed ball, stole second, went to third on a passed ball and scored on an infield error. Secovich, who entered today ranked second in all of Division III in stolen bases per game (1.19), now has 26 thefts on the season.

Senior Ryan Flaherty (Duxbury, Mass.) walked, went to third on a passed ball and the error and scored on a two-out single through the right side by senior DJ Prampin (Worcester, Mass.). Prampin extended his hitting streat to 12 games with the RBI single.

The lead went to 3-0 in the second as sophomore Jeyden Espinal (Fall River, Mass.) was hit by a pitch, went to second on a wild pitch, to third on a groundout and scored on a single up the middle by Beltramini. The RBI single by Beltramini also lengenthed his hitting streak to 12 games.

The Bears' next run came in the fifth as Beltramini walked, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on a two-out single up the middle by Sepeck who stretched his hitting streak to ten games.

BSU added a run in the ninth when Secovich doubled to left and scored on a single up the middle by Beltramini.

Salem State got on the scoreboard with a two-run single up the middle by sophomore Michael Buccaro (Stratford, Conn.) with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.

The Bears swept three games from the Vikings this season.

Junior Matt Walling (Plantsville, Conn.), the first of six pitchers, took the loss for Salem State and is 2-3.

BSU has a one-game lead over Anna Maria (10-2) in the MASCAC. The Bears had not played since last Wednesday.

BSU will be home on Thursday to face the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts at 3:30 p.m. at Alumni Park.

The Vikings play Friday at Anna Maria at 4 p.m.