BROOKLINE — With Jon Pardi’s “Mr. Saturday Night” blaring over the Friedman Diamond speakers pregame, the stage was set for a pitchers’ duel between junior right-hander Luc Rising and Towson’s own Liam Diehl, the two squads’ regular Saturday starters.
All it took from Northeastern was three runs and a quality start from Rising to earn its first home series win of 2026, prevailing 3-1 against the visiting Towson Tigers in a Saturday matinee.
Rising, who made one prior start after beginning the season in the bullpen, entered the day to the tune of a 2.03 ERA and a .167 opponent batting average across 13.1 innings pitched. When all was said and done, the Rochester Institute of Technology transfer turned in six innings alongside one earned run for the second consecutive start, lowering his season ERA to 1.86 and exiting in a position to pick up his first win as a Husky.
“[Rising] threw really well again. He’s been throwing well for us this year and all winter leading into today,” said head coach Mike Glavine . “He usually pounds the strike zone and changes speeds, and he gave us what we needed today, so it was a really, really great job.”
Rising jumped out to a commanding start early, getting ahead of the first six batters he faced. A leadoff walk to junior center fielder Nick LoBello put some pressure on the starter, who then shut down the next three Tigers hitters by way of a lineout to third and a pair of ground balls to close out the first.
On the other side of the ball, Diehl toed the slab for the Tigers in his fifth start of the season. A junior, Diehl started his career at High Point University before transferring to Harford Community College in his home state of Maryland, landing at Towson this season and posting a 2.70 ERA across 16.2 innings to start the year.
Diehl navigated trouble early, walking junior right fielder Ryan Gerety before plunking senior designated hitter Matt Brinker two batters later. His awry pitch followed numerous pick-off attempts to first, his effort to curtail a Northeastern baserunning platoon that entered Saturday with the third-most stolen bases per game in the nation.
With Gerety in scoring position, Diehl mowed down the next two batters he faced, punching out both after fanning senior center fielder Harrison Feinberg earlier in the frame. Just an inning later, sophomore Eric Cha knocked a first-pitch single into shallow center field before stealing his way into scoring position, only for Diehl to pick up three strikeouts in a row and bring his total to six K’s across the opening two innings.
“I like [Diehl], he’s competitive,” Glavine said. “When he got in trouble a couple times, he notched it up a little bit and came right at us.”
Glavine added he was impressed with Diehl’s performance, citing his ability to work out of situations with runners in scoring position and less than two outs, and acknowledged his hitters’ ability to work deep counts in helping the team turn the corner later in the game.
The two pitchers traded four scoreless frames, with Rising turning to his breaking ball to leap ahead in counts and freeze hitters. Diehl, on the other hand, showed his endurance and brought the heat. The Maryland native pumped high fastballs for strikeouts before drawing soft contact later on, tossing a six-pitch inning in the fourth.
In the fifth, the deadlock was broken. Having produced just two hits through the first four stanzas, the Northeastern bats got things started when redshirt sophomore catcher Will Fosberg singled into left field. A sacrifice bunt and a Gerety single advanced Fosberg to third before Feinberg dribbled a slow roller up the first base line. Eager to turn an inning-ending double play, Towson sophomore first baseman Nich Francuzencko wheeled around, overshooting second base and spilling the ball into the outfield. Fosberg strolled home as the game’s first run while Gerety and Feinberg moved into scoring position, with Gerety crossing on Brinker’s groundout one at-bat later.
Down but not out, the Tigers answered in the sixth. Head coach Matt Tyner shook up his lineup and replaced Francuzencko, inserting senior Josh Janove at first. Junior third baseman Frank Adamski Jr. drove in a run to get Towson back in the game, doubling to left center to score senior catcher Brian Heckelman. Heckelman had reached after knocking an 0-1 offering into right field for a single, extending his hit streak to six games in a row.
Towson nearly tied the contest right then and there, if not for an outfield relay between sophomore right fielder and senior shortstop Carmelo Musacchia that beat junior right fielder Keldrin Rodriguez to the plate.
“I thought our defense was the difference in this game,” Glavine said. “[I was] really impressed by the defense, and we did enough offensively. We left a bunch out there, and we missed some opportunities, but we did enough.”
The Huskies added an insurance run one inning later. Musacchia started the inning off hot when he broke his 0-11 slump with a leadoff triple. Tied for first in the CAA with ten sacrifice flies, Northeastern added another when Cha lifted a deep ball into center field, scoring Musacchia and extending the lead to 3-1.
After a closely contested six innings, both Rising and Diehl exited. Rising, in position for the win, accumulated five strikeouts to one leadoff walk while scattering four hits. Diehl slowed down after his commanding start, picking up one additional strikeout in the middle innings for a total of seven on the day. He allowed six hits and walked one batter, also the leadoff man.
Graduate student transfer Andrew Wertz stepped in to close out the game for Rising, earning the save with three shutout innings. The former Salve Regina arm tossed 31 pitches, delivering back-to-back one-two-three innings before closing out the ninth with a swinging strikeout.
With the win, Northeastern earns its first home series win of the season and 12th consecutive CAA series victory, a streak dating back to 2024.
The Huskies return to Friedman Diamond on Sunday, closing out the series against Towson. Max Schwartzberg and Sammy Glassman have the call with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
Chase Alexander is a writer and broadcaster with WRBB Sports. Check out his personal portfolio here and feel free to follow him on LinkedIn and X (Twitter).