FAIRFIELD, Conn. – On a brisk and windy day, the Fairfield University Baseball team blew by the Iona Gaels in a doubleheader sweep with scores of 14-6 and 2-1 to open their portion of Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play. Left-hander Bowen Baker was the star of the twin bill in the night cap with eight shutout innings after the Stags pounded out 14 hits and drew 16 walks in the opener.
 
"On a cold and windy day you have to be able to pitch and make the plays on defense and we did that," Head Coach Bill Currier said. "We played good defense and Bo Baker was very good in getting us eight innings and throwing strikes with three pitches and did a good job in getting us into a good position."
 
Game One: Fairfield 14, Iona 6
 
The Stags put on 31 baserunners with 14 hits, 16 walks, and a hit batter in grinding out 14 runs. The Stags scored the first six runs of the game with a pair of runs coming in the first, third, and fourth innings.
 
Ethan Hibbard would be responsible for the first two RBI for the squad with a run scoring hit in the first and then beating the 25mph wind gusts with a solo shot over the scoreboard in left field. Zach Selinger would lift a sacrifice fly to right to put the score at 4-0 for the Stags.
 
Matt Bergevin lined a double down the left field line to bring in a run in the fourth and would later score on a wild pitch, giving Fairfield a 6-0 advantage.
 
Iona would score the next five runs and threaten to tie the game in the fifth but former Gael Blake Helmstetter picked up a key 5-4-3 double play to end the Iona rally.
 
The Stags would put the game out of reach with eight runs over the next three frames. Payten Wawruck and Bergevin collected RBI doubles and Matt Bucciero tallied a sacrifice fly for a RBI in the seventh. The Stags would then draw three-straight bases loaded walks in the eighth and Wawruck capped the scoring with a two-run single.
 
Matt Lussier stopped any chance for an Iona rally with a nice diving play in the bottom of the eighth to keep the score at 14-6.
 
Chris DiFiore gave the Stags length out of the pen with four innings allowing just one run and picking up his first save as a Stag and the second of his career.
 
Seven Stags picked up base hits in the opener, led by Luke Nomura who collected a career-high four out of the leadoff spot. Nick Sturino would tie a program single-game record drawing five of the team's 16 walks.
 
Game Two: Fairfield 2, Iona 1
 
Baker was the star of the nightcap, surrendering just two hits and two walks through eight shutout innings. He would also set a new career-high with nine strikeouts. In his eight innings, he gave up just a single in the fourth and a single in the eighth. He was around the strike zone all day as 18 of the 26 batters he faced got to two strikes.
 
Baker was relieved after 114 pitches and gave way to Jack Erbeck who earned his first save of the season after striking out two in the ninth. He worked around trouble to get the save after having the first two runners reach base. He would induce a fly out to right for the first out, but both runners moved up putting the tying run in scoring position. He would then get back-to-back strikeouts with the only run scoring on a wild pitch.
 
The offense of the Stags was provided in the middle innings with Sturino lifting a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth for the first run of the game. Selinger launched the biggest fly for the squad with an opposite field home run in the sixth.
 
Fairfield will look for the sweep of the Gaels in their conference opening series on Saturday at 2pm.