The UMass Lowell baseball team defeated Pepperdine 7-4 in a ten-inning game on March 13, with senior Carlos Martinez leading the offense by going 4-for-5, including a home run, three runs scored, and two runs batted in.
The win gives the River Hawks a 6-7 record for the season and marks a close contest that required extra innings to decide. The result is significant as it allows UMass Lowell to approach the end of their road trip with momentum heading into the final games of the series.
Head Coach Nick Barese said, “Gutsy, gutsy effort today. Started with Mucciarone doing what an ace is supposed to do. At the end of a long trip, with a thin bullpen he goes out and gives us 8 really strong innings. LeFrancois showed a lot of toughness pitching around some adversity, getting us back in the dugout and giving our offense a chance. Carlos came up huge with the homerun, and it’s really good to see him starting to heat up. We put ourselves in a great spot to end the trip on a high note tomorrow.”
Graduate student Nicholas Solorzano hit his first home run as a River Hawk and drove in two runs during the game. Junior Alfred Mucciarone started from the bullpen and pitched 7.2 innings with two strikeouts while allowing only two earned runs. Sophomore Jake LeFrancois closed out the game for UMass Lowell, earning his first win of the season after pitching 2.1 innings without giving up an earned run.
The teams traded early runs before UMass Lowell took control in later innings through timely hitting and defensive plays. After Pepperdine tied it at four in the ninth inning, UMass Lowell responded in extra innings when Ryan Strand scored following an error by Pepperdine’s shortstop, followed by Martinez’s two-run home run that secured victory.
UMass Lowell will conclude its series against Pepperdine on Saturday, March 14, with a doubleheader scheduled at Eddy D. Field Stadium.
