Baseball ends season in 8-3 loss to Framingham State in MASCAC opening round

Framingham, MA- The third seeded Framingham State baseball team used a five run sixth inning as they rallied past the sixth seeded MCLA Trailblazers 8-3 tonight in the 2018 MASCAC Baseball Championships opening round.  The Rams improve to 18-16 but more importantly advance into the double elimination round and will head to #2 Mass. Maritime tomorrow for a 3pm tilt.  The Trailblazers end their season at 13-15-1.

Michael Andrews settled down after a tough second inning to shut down the Trailblazers offense.  He went the distance scattering ten hits and striking out three MCLA batters.  

MCLA got to Andrews early with three runs in the second inning.  Joe Dimassimo's RBI single scored Logan Rumbolt, who was hit by a pitch.  Joe Toledo followed with a two run single to increase the lead to 3-0 after two innings of play.

Early on, the story was MCLA starter Liam Nolan.  The right hander was mowing down Ram hitters and was collecting strikeouts each inning.  Framingham finally got on the board with two runs in the bottom of the fourth innings on Kyle Dembrowski's two run double slicing the MCLA lead to just 3-2.  Nolan escaped further damage and then collected his 12th strikeout to end the fifth before running into trouble in the game changing sixth.

The Rams sent nine batters to the plate in the frame that opened with Kyle Pileski's game tying home run to center field.  After a one out Dembrowski double, Anthony Venuti singled into right field and scored Dembrowski to give the Rams a 4-3 lead.  That chased Nolan and MCLA went to left hander Bobby New to limit the damage.

FSU scored on an errant pickoff attempt to increase the lead to 5-3 and when Cameron Borrelli singled home two more runs, it was 7-3 in favor of the Rams. MCLA appeared ready to rally in the top of the 8th inning getting two runners on without an out, however the Rams turned a baseball rarity, a triple play to escape unscathed.  Jake Ferrara laced a line drive to shortstop, but Matthew Brockett caught it and easily tripled off the MCLA runners.

They would tack on another run in the eighth to account for the final margin.

Andrews got stronger as the game wore on and kept the MCLA offense at bay.  Dembrowski, Pileski, and Brockett all had two hits in the 12 hit Framingham attack.  Pileski and Jordan Pallazola each scored a pair of runs.

MCLA was paced offensively by Joe Toledo who went 3-4.  Brett LaBonte added two hits.  

Nolan's final pitching line was 5.1 innings allowing 6 hits.  He struck out 12 and yielded five runs, four of which were earned.

The game marked the final one in the careers of MCLA seniors Nolan, LaBonte, Bill Pulasky, Nick DiSanti, Joe Buonemani, Frank Rickus, and Joe Dimassimo.