Mitchell College Loses Early Baseball Lead

Mitchell College lost the opener of a three-game weekend series on Friday, getting out to an early lead but falling 8-3 to Daniel Webster College. The following information was provided by David Longolucco, sports information director at Mitchell College:

The Eagles (11-10 overall, 6-4 NECC) rallied behind a strong outing from starting pitcher Kory Kiro (Goffstown, N.H./Goffstown), who settled down after a rough start and pitched eight strong innings. He improved to 3-1 on the season and allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits while striking out seven.

Mitchell jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a two-run single to left field by junior Will Charkowsky (Cold Spring, N.Y./Haldane). The Mariners added another run in the third on an RBI single to left by freshman Evan Peck (Shelton, Conn./Shelton).

Daniel Webster got on the scoreboard with a run in the fourth inning on a double by Tyler Bonin (Litchfield, N.H./Campbell) and pulled even in the fifth. With two outs in the frame, the Eagles strung together four consecutive hits and plated runs on singles by Kyle Brigham (Hudson, N.H./Alvirne) and Korey LeLievre (Hudson, N.H./Alvirne). Bonin then laced a shot to first base that could have done more damage, but a diving grab by Peck ended the threat.

Kiro got into trouble in the next two innings but worked his way out each time. He allowed a lead-off double in the fifth but never let the runner off second base. In the sixth, the Mariners put runners on corners with one only out, but Kiro again wriggled out of trouble to keep the score knotted at 3-3.

The Mariners nearly took the lead in the seventh when freshman Rafael Garcia (New Britain, Conn./New Britain) singled to right with two outs and took second base on a fielding error. Senior Ethan Graynor (Leonia, N.J./Leonia) followed with another base hit to right, but LeLievre came up firing and gunned the runner out at the plate.

Daniel Webster took the lead in the eighth and knocked Mitchell starter Justin Lemanski (New Britain, Conn./E.C. Goodwin Tech) from the game in the process. The Eagles loaded the bases with no outs before Erick Bourdeau (Alton Bay, N.H./Prospect Mountain) delivered a two-run single to right-center. After the Mariners went to the bullpen in favor of sophomore Travis Gemecki (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley), Daniel Webster pushed across another run on a sacrifice fly to center by Rich Lizotte (West Warwick, R.I./West Warwick) that scored Ryan Dupont (Merrimack, N.H./Merrimack/Becker).

The Eagles tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the ninth on back-to-back RBI singles by LeLievre and Bonin but wouldn’t need the extra cushion. Lizotte closed out the win by retiring the side in order in the bottom of the ninth.

Lemanski (2-2 overall) threw 7.0 innings and allowed six runs (four earned) on 11 hits and struck out one.

Mitchell and Daniel Webster will wrap up their weekend series today with a doubleheader in Nashua, N.H. First pitch is slated for noon.