Baseball
Dominant Pitching Leads Rams to Series Sweep of Dayton
April 5, 2009
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
KINGSTON, R.I. - The Rhode Island pitching staff combined for 17 strikeouts while giving up just two runs on 10 hits in a Sunday afternoon doubleheader sweep of visiting Dayton. Game two starter Eric Smith (Milford, Conn.) tossed a complete-game three-hit shutout as the Rams downed the Flyers, 3-0, following a 4-2 victory in game one.
Offensively, sophomore Tom Coulombe (Lincoln, R.I.) led the Rams with three hits and two runs on the afternoon while junior Oliver Palmer (North Kingstown, R.I.) and freshman Milan Adams (Exeter, R.I.) recorded a pair of doubles each.
With the series sweep over the Flyers - who entered the weekend tied for first place in the Atlantic 10 with a perfect 6-0 conference record - Rhode Island improves to 17-10-1 (7-2). Dayton, meanwhile, drops to 16-13 (6-3).
Freshman Mike LeBel (Quincy, Mass.) got things started for Rhody in the first game, leading off the bottom of the fifth with a single to left field and coming around to score on a double down the right field line by sophomore Kenny Burns (Shelton, Conn.). Palmer followed with a two-out double that plated Adams and gave the Rams a 2-0 lead.
A trio of doubles by Dayton's Jake Hoover, Jimmy Roesinger and Scott Dunwoody evened the score at 2-2 in the top of the seventh but Rhody plated two more in the bottom of the eighth for the win.
Senior Dan Rhault (Lincoln, R.I.) singled through the right side with one away and advanced to third on a single to right by Coulombe. Junior Rob DeVeney (Marlton, N.J.) then sac-bunted to score Rhault and move Coulombe into scoring position for sophomore Jeff Cammans (Jamestown, R.I.). Cammans kept things rolling with an RBI single that drove in Coulombe and put Rhody in front 4-2.
Junior starter Nick Greenwood (Southington, Conn.) struck out eight batters and gave up two runs over 6.1 innings of work before being relieved by classmate Mark Fraser (Nashua, N.H.). Fraser, a lefty specialist, retired the one batter he faced before sophomore Gardner Leaver (Montauk, N.Y.) took over. Leaver earned the win for URI, tossing an inning and a third with zero hits, while senior Luke Demko (Gilford, N.H.) - who came on to close things out in the top of the ninth - picked up his league-leading seventh save of the season.
In game two, sophomore Pete Mastors (Narragansett, R.I.) put Rhody on the board in the bottom of the first as he drew a lead-off walk and stole second before crossing the plate on a double to right by Palmer.
The Rams went up 2-0 in their next at-bat when Adams' RBI-double scored Cammans, who had singled through the left side and advanced to second on a passed ball.
Smith, meanwhile, was all business as he retired 13 consecutive batters from the first through the fifth inning. He finished the day with six K's and just two walks over nine innings of work to record his first complete game as a Ram.
A sixth-inning sac-fly by Cammans would send Coulombe home for the URI's third and final run on the afternoon.
Dayton's Chuck Ghysels (2-1) was charged with the loss in game two while Quinn Haselhorst (3-3) got the L in game one after pitching all eight innings for the Flyers.
The Rams are back in action on Tuesday afternoon when they play host to Bryant University. First pitch between the Rams and Bulldogs is set for 3:30 p.m.
