April 10, 2007

Box Score

STORRS, Conn. - For the first time since 1998, the University of Massachusetts (8-13-0, 3-5-0) baseball team beat the University of Connecticut (13-16-0, 3-6-0). It took ten innings, but the Minutemen secured victory over the Huskies when junior Andy Tuetken (Smithfield, R.I.) crossed home in the top of the tenth for the winning run. Senior Bryan Adamksi (South Deerfield, Mass.) threw four masterful innings in relief to pick up his team-leading second win.

After Tuetken doubled to lead off the tenth, Adamski laid down a sacrifice bunt to attempt to move the runner on second over to third. However, UConn made an errant throw to first, allowing Tuetken to motor home from second and Adamski to reach third on the play. Adamski would later score on a subsequent sacrifice fly by Ryan Franczek (Chicopee, Mass.) to add an insurance run to the Maroon and White's lead.

UMass' pitching staff, playing their fifth game in four days, banded together for a gutsy team effort. Freshman Jared Freni (Malden, Mass.), pitching on two days rest, took the hill to start and gave his teammates three solid innings. Mitchell Eilenberg (Brooklyn, N.Y.) came on in relief for two innings and allowed three runs, only one of which was earned. The last two pitchers for the Minutemen were Beau Hodges (Manchester, N.H.) and Adamski, who combined for five scoreless innings to end the game.

The Minutemen jumped out to an early lead in the first but were unable to continue the momentum, as they were shut down until the sixth inning. With runners on second and third in the sixth, UMass' second leading hitter, Jim Macdonald (Cheshire, Conn.) grounded out to third, scoring Adam Tempesta (Brockton, Mass.) from third to cut the Husky lead to two.

In the eighth, UMass tied up the game when junior captain Bryan Garrity (Peabody, Mass.) singled to left field, to plate Tuetken. Bill Rankin (Willington, Conn.) followed with an RBI groundout, tying the game, which UMass would eventually go on to win.

UMass will return home for its next game on Friday when they host the George Washington Colonials in Atlantic 10 action. First pitch at Earl Lorden Field is set for 3 p.m. Fans who cannot make it to the game can follow online with live audio and Gametracker on UMassAthletics.com