MEDFORD, MA (March 13, 2023) -- On a cold and rainy day in Medford, the Tufts University baseball team came out hot to start Monday with four runs in the first and third innings in rolling past the previously undefeated Corsairs of UMass-Dartmouth 12-1 in non-conference play from Sol Gittleman Park. Tufts is now 3-0 on the season, with all three games coming at home.
Tufts starter
Connor Podeszwa, who was named as the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Pitcher of the Week earlier in the day, sit down the Corsairs in the top of the first and the offense quickly gave him a lead.
Ben Leonard started the four-run rally with a walk, and moved to third on a wild pitch and sacrifice. After a Johnny Evans infield single, Evans and Leonard executed a perfect double steal to get the Jumbos on the board.
After an pop out,
Connor Davidson stepped up in his first at-bat of the season and crushed an opposite field two-run shot to make it 3-0 Jumbos. Four pitches later,
Todd Stawiecki stepped up and crushed a long homer over the tall right-field fence to go back-to-back with Davidson and push Tufts' lead to 4-0. UMD would have chances to score in the second and third frames, but Podeszwa stranded two runners in each inning to keep the Corsairs scoreless.
The Jumbos would tack on four more to blow the game open in the third inning, as Davidson singled in a run,
Ozzie Fleischer lifted a run-scoring sacrifice fly and Leonard singled to left to bring around two more runs. The Corsairs got on the board in the top of the fifth, as DJ Perron singled in a run to break up the shutout and chase Podeszwa from the game.
Justin Wells came in and quickly induced an inning-ending double play to end the UMD rally.
Tufts answered right back in the bottom half of the fifth, as Leonard ripped a double down the right-field line to score
Jackson Duffy and Fleischer after both singled earlier in the inning. Leonard also came around to score on an Evans' sacrifice fly to make it 11-1. Leonard would also later post a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the eight to finish the scoring for Tufts.
Leonard finished the day 3-for-4 with a career-high five RBI, walking twice as well. Davidson finished 2-for-3with two runs, three RBI and two walks, and Fleischer was 2-for-3 with a run and RBI. Stawiecki was 1-for-1 with a walk and homer in his two plate appearances, while
Henry Fleckner and
Connor Bowman each walked twice and scored a run.
On the bump, Podeszwa went 4.1 innings, allowing four hits and one earned while fanning five Corsair hitters. Wells got his first win as a Jumbo Monday, tossing 3.1 innings of scoreless relief scattering two hits while fanning two batters.
Brendan McFall was also sharp, striking out the side to work a clean, 1-2-3 inning.
The Jumbos will travel to Quincy, MA Tuesday afternoon at 3 p.m. for non-conference action, battling Eastern Nazarene College in the first road game of the year for Tufts.
--JUMBOS--
