FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University baseball team split a doubleheader with Central Connecticut State University, winning the opener by a 9-2 count before falling in the second game by a 7-4 margin. Ryan Plourde hit a three-run homer and EJ Ashworth allowed just one run in seven innings to pace the Stags in the first game.
The home team scored in five innings, including a single run in the first inning. Dean Sadik opened the game with a single, which Rob LoPinto followed with a walk. After a fielder's choice, Jake Salpietro brought home the game's first run with a sacrifice fly to left field.
The Stags put two more runs on the board in the second inning as Jack Giannini reached on a misplayed grounder to start the inning. Sal Ciccone put two runners in scoring position when he laced a double to right center field. Alex Witkus brought home both runners with a single up the middle. The score remained 3-0 until the sixth inning when Plourde drove the ball over the left field fence, scoring Sadik and LoPinto to make it a 6-0 game.
Central Connecticut broke up Ashworth's shutout bid with a run in the seventh inning when Connor Fitzsimons placed a base hit just inside the right field line, chasing home Dominic Severino who doubled earlier in the inning. The Stags plated two more runs in the seventh inning. Seb Salvo got things started with a triple to right field and came home a couple pitches later after pinch hitter Billy Zolga hit a single to center field. He would score later in the inning when a throwing error went down the right field line.
The Blue Devils added a run in the eighth inning when Nick Coro and Bryan Rivera registered back-to-back doubles, making it an 8-2 game. Fairfield finished the scoring in the eighth as Plourde's RBI single made it a 9-2 final. Ashworth earned the win by scattering four hits and fanning two batters.
In the second game, the Blue Devils put up single runs in the first and second innings to take an early lead. In the first inning JP Sportman led off with a single and took second base on Anthony Turgeon's base hit. Josh Ingham picked up the RBI with a single to center field. The second run came an inning later as Nick Hayes doubled and came home on an error.
Central Connecticut pitcher Nick Neumann made those runs stand up as the senior tossed five shutout innings to take a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning. Fairfield finally broke through when Salpietro and Brendan Tracy each recorded an RBI single to tie the game at 2-2. The score remained tied until the eighth inning when the Blue Devils scored five times to take a 7-2 advantage. Matt Blandino and Ingham each posted a two-run single to account for the first four runs of the inning.
Fairfield made things interesting in the bottom of the inning by scoring two runs, courtesy of RBI singles from Sebastian Salvo and Tracy.
