BRIDGEWATER, Mass. –The visiting Framingham State University baseball team cruised to a 17-4 victory over Bridgewater State University in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) contest on Thursday afternoon at Alumni Park.
The Rams, who banged out 22 hits in the game, improve to 15-13 on the season and 8-5 MASCAC, while the host Bears fall to 10-15 overall and 6-7 in conference play.
Framingham jumped out to an early lead with a three-run first inning. A two-out RBI single by Kyle Dembrowski (Natick, Mass.) followed by a two-run single off the bat of junior Andrew Curtis (Dracut, Mass.) accounted for the scoring in the frame.
The Rams took advantage of two key BSU errors in the second to plate five unearned runs. All of the damage occurred with two outs as the first two batters of the inning were retired. Dembrowski knocked in a pair of runs with a two-run double, while Curtis added an RBI single. Curtis also scored a run on the back end of a double steal.
Senior Joe Ambrosino's (Bradenton, Fla.) two-run base hit in the top of the third extended the Framingham lead to 10-0.
The Bears got on the board with three runs in the home half of the third on back-to-back RBI singles by freshman Ruben Gonzalez (Stoughton, Mass.) and senior Kevin Bresciani (Hopedale, Mass.) and a Framingham throwing error.
The Rams answered with a three-spot in the top of fourth on a balk and RBI base hits by freshman Gino DeSimone (Medford, Mass.) and Ambrosino.
Dembrowski scored on the back end of double steal in the fifth to make it a 14-3 game.
Bridgewater got one back in the bottom of the fifth. With two outs, Gonzalez reached on an infield single and Bresciani followed with a double down the right field line. Gonzalez raced home on an errant throw to make it 14-4.
The Rams capped off the scoring with a run in the eighth (unearned) and two more in the ninth. In the eighth, senior Aaron Williams (Brockton, Mass.) reached on a throwing error, moved to second on a ground out and scored on Bobby Higgins' (Barnstable, Mass.) RBI single. Curtis doubled to lead off the ninth and scored on Fogarty's RBI single. The final run of the game came as a result of a wild pitch.
Senior lefthander Kyle Hodgson (Berkley, Mass.) got the win on the mound for Framingham State. Hodgson (7-1) allowed four runs (two earned) on nine hits over seven innings with a walk and three strikeouts.
Fogarty was a perfect 5-for-5 at the plate with a double, a walk, a run and an RBI to lead the Rams' 22-hit attack. Curtis (4-for-6, 2B, 3R, 3RBI), Dembrowski (3-for-6, 2B, 3R, 3RBI), Williams (3-for-5, 2BB, 3R) also finished with at least three hits for the visitors.
Bresciani went 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI to pace the BSU offense. Gonzalez and classmate Liam Bell (Wells, Maine) also registered multiple hits for the Bears. Gonzalez went 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI, while Bell was 2-for-4 at the plate and scored a run.
Five Bridgewater State pitchers combined to give up 17 runs (11 earned) on 22 hits with six walks and nine strikeouts. The BSU defense committed five errors as six of the 17 runs were unearned.
The Bears and the Rams wrap up the three-game MASCAC set on Friday afternoon with a noontime doubleheader at Bowditch Field in Framingham.