Jumbo Baseball Opens Impressively With 9-4 Victory at Lynchburg College

Scott Staniewicz was an offensive leader in his first collegiate start

LYNCHBURG, VA - Senior pitcher Dave Ryan (Trumbull, CT) went seven innings allowing five hits and one run as the Tufts baseball team opened its 2012 season with a 9-4 victory at Lynchburg College on Friday afternoon.

The Jumbos, who left early Thursday morning for their annual spring break trip, showed no signs of being travel weary as they out-hit a Hornets team playing in their 17th game of the season 13-8. Lynchburg dropped to 12-5 overall.

The Jumbos scored single runs in the second and fourth innings, with junior 1B Tom Howard (Rockville Centre, NY) and junior RF Eric Weikert (Avondale Estates, GA) driving home the runs. Hornet junior second baseman Michael Del Buono launched his first of two long balls on the day, a solo shot to right center in the bottom of the fourth that made it 2-1.

Tufts scored again in the fifth after a double by freshman CF Connor McDavitt (Holden, MA) and an rbi single by junior 2B Scott Staniewicz (Boca Raton, FL). That pair would lead Tufts offensively, as McDavitt finished 2 for 3 with three runs and Staniewicz went 2 for 5 with three rbi. Tufts held a 3-1 lead after six frames.

The Jumbos pulled away with two in the seventh and four in the eighth, aided by some LC miscues. Del Buono's second homer, a two-run shot in the eighth inning, stayed just inside the right-field line foul pole. Senior Richard Palase doubled to drive in freshman Lincoln Evans for the game's final run in the ninth.

Tufts' Ryan sent eight Hornets down on strikes while walking just one. Freshman Matt Outman worked six innings for LC, allowing nine hits, no walks and three earned runs with five strikeouts. Palase had two hits, including a triple, and junior Michael Kenah also had a pair of base-hits.

Senior Sam Sager (Cranston, RI), who started at shortstop for Tufts, and Weikert also recorded two hits apiece.

Tufts is off tomorrow before playing at Washington and Lee on Sunday at 1 pm. The Hornets travel to Eastern Mennonite University Saturday for an Old Dominion Athletic Conference doubleheader at noon.

Game boxscore

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