BOSTON, MA (April 12, 2023) -- The Tufts University baseball team allowed just five hits while fanning 17 hitters on the night in a 3-1 non-conference road victory at UMass Boston in play from Monan Park Wednesday evening.
The 17 strikeouts for the pitching staff was a season-high and was the most for the Jumbos in a game since sitting down 18 Castleton hitters by strikeout back on March 17, 2017.
The majority of the strikeout total came from
Silas Reed, who piggybacked starter
Jack Schwartz to work six strong innings while striking out a career-high 13 hitters. The 13 strikeouts for a single game was the most this season by any Jumbo pitcher, and best since
Cameron Mayer punched out 15 on April 22, 2022.
Offense was hard to come by all night for both teams, as the contest featured just 10 total hits. Tufts (14-6) got onto the board first in the top of the second inning, as first-year
Jesse McCullough delivered his first career RBI in his first career start with an RBI single to plate
Ben Leonard.
Later in the inning Tufts doubled its lead as
Jimmy Evans was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in a run. In the top of the fourth the Jumbos added to their lead as
Connor Flavin doubled off the scoreboard in left-center field to bring around Evans to make it 3-0.
The Beacons (15-9) scored their only run of the game in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out single, but the rally ended as a runner was thrown out at the plate to end the threat.
UMass Boston threatened again in the bottom of the sixth, loading the bases with two outs but Reed was able to work around a double and two hit by pitches with a strikeout to end the inning.
In the bottom of the eighth
Justin Wells relieved Reed on the mound and gave up a lead-off double, but then struck out the next three batters to keep Tufts ahead by a pair of runs. That was the last runner that the Beacons would get, as
Liam Wilson earned the save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
Henry Fleckner was on base four times, going 1-for-2 with three walks and a stolen base. Flavin finished 1-for-4 with a walk and RBI, while McCullough was 1-for-3 with a stolen base and a sacrifice bunt.
Connor Brala also had a hit in the win.
Schwartz started for Tufts and worked a scoreless first, before Reed took over to go six strong as he allowed four hits and no earned runs.
Tufts returns home Friday after playing the final five games on the road, hosting Bowdoin College April 14 at 3 p.m. in New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) action from Sol Gittleman Park.
--JUMBOS--
