Northeastern’s weekend series at the lowly Towson Tigers seemed like an opportunity to pick up wins and boost their run differential in the process, especially considering the Huskies entered on an eight-game win streak.
And, while Friday’s game did nothing to dispel that notion, Saturday’s affair went a completely different direction. Towson hung a five-spot on the Huskies in the third inning, and did just enough the rest of the way to hold on for a 10-8 win.
Northeastern (23-7, 6-2) entered today’s contest sitting at the top of the CAA table, while the Tigers (8-21, 3-5) began the day in 11th. Towson’s performances have been better of late, though, as they’d won three of their last five going into Saturday.
The game got off to a rather slow start, with neither team able to scratch out a run in the first two innings. It was Towson that looked the bigger threat, though, recording four early hits off Huskies starter Aiven Cabral.
Things changed in the third. After Tigers starter Jake Michel kept Northeastern at bay for the third consecutive inning, senior utility man Bryce Frederick broke the deadlock with a home run. Towson continued to put together good at-bats, recording a single and a stolen base before an error by Huskies third baseman Jack Goodman. Cabral responded by inducing a groundout, but back-to-back singles by Taye Robinson and Brian Heckelman made it a 3-0 game.
With that, Cabral’s day was done after just 2.1 innings, leaving two baserunners in his wake. Junior left-hander Jack Bowery entered, and the Tigers continued to pour it on. Freshman Brady Nathison smacked a run-plating double followed by consecutive groundouts, one of which scored a run. When the dust settled, Towson had a commanding five-run lead.
Northeastern’s offense showed signs of life, scoring in the fourth inning after back-to-back singles and a fielding error by the third baseman. The fifth inning brought more of the same, as graduate first baseman Tyler MacGregor continued his strong stretch of play with an RBI double. The hit plated freshman infielder Ryan Gerety, but senior infielder Luke Beckstein was thrown out advancing first-to-third, squashing the rally.
The bottom of the inning brought more issues for the Huskies. After four Towson singles scored a run, senior designated hitter Elijah Dickerson belted a two-out grand slam. All of a sudden, the lead was 10-2, and the underdog Tigers had tagged two of Northeastern’s better pitchers for five runs apiece.
Northeastern’s offense did their best, but it would’ve taken a minor miracle to overcome an eight-run deficit. Junior infielder Jack Doyle launched a two-run home run in the sixth inning, the aforementioned MacGregor added a three-run blast to his resumé in the seventh, and senior catcher Gregory Bozzo provided a pinch-hit, solo home run in the ninth, but it wouldn’t be enough. Two big Towson innings proved enough to condemn the Huskies to their seventh loss this season.
As has been the case in virtually every loss, Northeastern’s pitching was to blame. The Huskies have given up six or more runs in all but one loss this season, and Saturday’s result was more of the same.
The offense continued its tremendous start to the season with an eight-run effort. The team slugged three home runs, but only managed a solitary walk after recording 10 in Friday’s contest. 10 team strikeouts was an unusually high number, but seemed to have little impact on the overall production.
The defense was poor, to put it nicely. Goodman and sophomore shortstop Carmelo Musacchia each committed two errors, combining for a team season-high four. Although only one of ten runs were unearned, shaky defense was certainly a factor in Towson’s offensive explosion.
Cabral and Bowery each conceded five runs; four earned for Cabral, while all five of Bowery’s were earned. Graduate right-hander Cooper McGrath tossed the final three frames for the Huskies, allowing no runs on two hits while striking out three.
Northeastern will aim to get back to winning ways when they go for a series win against Towson on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. Written coverage will be provided on our website following the contest.