It’s a day that’s come highly anticipated each spring since its debut in 2004: Northeastern’s seven-inning exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox. For the past few years, it’s been a tight contest; Northeastern takes an early lead, the Sox battle back, and the major leaguers end up taking the matchup by a few innings to start Spring Training out on the right foot.
The 2026 edition seemed to read the same story at first, but the Huskies’ pitching control quickly got away from them as they cycled through arm after arm, landing them in a pit with a final score of 18-3.
Although the Red Sox have never lost a game against a collegiate team, this one told a tale of not just an upset scale, but of two baseball teams in vastly different spots this season. The Huskies are young, searching for their identity after losing significant players to the MLB draft and graduation (including their entire starting rotation), while the Red Sox found their first postseason in years this past October and followed it up with some strong moves in the offseason to set themselves up for another deep push. In other words, it’s no longer a remarkably strong Huskies’ team against a struggling MLB opponent; the tables have turned.
The Huskies started off the exhibition in a good place, with a strong start from UMass transfer Robbie O’Connor. In stark contrast from last Saturday’s start against Grand Canyon — when the junior let up two walks, four hits by pitch, and four earned runs in 0.2 innings — O’Connor showed flashes of greatness. Across two innings, the junior allowed just one run, while he racked up a handful of groundouts, a strikeout against Allan Castro, and a 1-2-3 second inning (the only time the Huskies would go three up, three down that afternoon). Pitching for contact is nothing unfamiliar for the Huskies after having a guy like Max Gitlin who could pitch a complete-game shutout with a single K, and it’s something that seemed to work for O’Connor’s showing, as he avoided last week’s control issues with some routine sinkers to get Boston to bite.
Behind O’Connor’s command, Northeastern jetted off to a 2-1 lead against Red Sox starter Tyler Uberstine. Harrison Feinberg got the Huskies aboard in the top of the first with a one-out single, and after stealing his way to second, Ryan Gerety brought him around with a single of his own.
One inning later, Anthony Ruggiero put on a solo show. The redshirt freshman delivered a powerful line drive single to reach first base, then stole second and third, where a throwing error gave him the space to reach home.
But that would be the last Huskies run until the top of the seventh, and the end of their stolen bases, a category in which they typically excel, having finished fourth in the NCAA in stolen bases per game in 2025.
Instead, the Red Sox got rolling. And quickly.
In the bottom of the third, catcher Ronald Rosario evened the score with a solo bomb off of Scott Longo. A few batters later, with a pair of runners aboard, a fielding error let them both through.
That three-run inning gave way for a four-run frame the next time around. In the fifth, the Red Sox quieted down after putting in nearly a full set of substitutions, but came back with a vengeance one inning later.
It was the bottom of the sixth and redshirt sophomore Jack Cropper stepped up to the mound, looking to redeem himself after a dismal first outing of the year against Iowa last weekend. But things don’t always go as planned. Cropper loaded the bases on back-to-back-to-back walks and it sealed the Huskies’ fate for the rest of the inning. Marvin Alcantara and Mickey Gasper brought the three baserunners in with singles, ending Cropper’s stint, but that left Max Marchetti to inherit a no-out inning with runners in scoring position. He did record an out, but a few more hits and Marchetti was right back to where he started, but with even more damage done. Freshman righty Tom Mahoney entered the game for the Huskies, and although he let through both inherited runners, Mahoney was able to limit the damage, ending the inning on a pair of flyouts. By the time the dust had settled, the Red Sox had scored nine, bursting their way to a 16-run lead.
All the while, Boston’s pitchers shut down Northeastern. The Huskies had a couple of looks, but none that would’ve had a chance against the wide gap the Red Sox had built. Most notably, in the top of the fifth, Carmelo Musacchia (who’s gone 7-for-14 to start the season) started the inning with a line-drive single. He inched his way around the diamond, but the Huskies couldn’t muster up enough at the plate to bring him home.
At the top of the seventh, the Huskies finally got the bats to click for the first time in five innings. Thank goodness Northeastern had brought in Mahoney to pitch in the inning prior, because they were also able to utilize him at the plate, where he blasted an RBI single to center field to score Cooper Tarantino and give the Huskies a break from their frustrations.
Oddly enough, despite an 18-3 loss, Friday’s game marked the most hits the Huskies have tallied against the Red Sox since 2017, when a nine-hit game nearly earned a college team its first win over the major leaguers. Unfortunately for Northeastern, their seven hits were all spread-out singles and outnumbered by their K’s, but it showed a glimmer of promise at the plate against a high-caliber opponent.
The problem for Northeastern this season stands to be the pitching, a complete reversal from last season. Although this game won’t go on the official record books, it reflects the story that started last weekend of a young and inexperienced pitching staff that kicked off its season with a 13.70 ERA across opening weekend. But if pitching coach Kevin Cobb has shown anything over his tenure at Northeastern, it’s that he can shape pitchers into stars, and many of these Huskies pitchers’ journeys are just getting started.
The Huskies remain in Fort Myers this weekend, traveling across town to take on Minnesota in a two-game series, starting Saturday at 6:05 p.m. WRBB will provide written coverage of both games.
Amelia Ballingall is the Editor-in-Chief for WRBB Sports. She has been a writer and broadcaster with the organization since 2022, and is a color analyst for UConn women’s hockey on ESPN+. You can read more of her work here.