Posted: May 14, 2015
Sophomore right-hander David Hesslink (San Diego, Calif.) threw eight innings of shutout ball to lead fifth-seeded MIT to a 4-0 victory over eighth-seeded Suffolk University on Thursday morning in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Division III New England Baseball Regional at Whitehouse Field.
With the win, the Engineers (26-13) stay alive in the double-elimination tournament and will play the winner of second-seeded Wesleyan University and sixth-seeded Castleton tomorrow at 1:15 p.m. Suffolk finishes the season at 18-26 overall after making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2009 and fifth overall.
In recording his fifth of the season, Hesslink allowed just six hits in eight innings of action while striking out four and walking two. Junior right-hander Michael Wymer (Flower Mound, Texas) capped off the triumph with a perfect ninth.
Senior right-hander Frank Tierney (Hyde Park, Mass.) notched the loss for the Rams, yielding four runs and striking out five in a complete-game effort.
Offensively, junior Nate Rodman (Corvallis, Ore.), senior Reid Bishop Cypress, Texas) and senior Hayden Cornwell (Newport Beach, Calif.) all knocked in runs while sophomore John Drago (Peoria, Ariz.) and freshman Austin Filiere (Chandler, Ariz.) each collected a pair of hits.
The Engineers were first to score when Rodman's two-out RBI double drove in Drago in the bottom of the first. A slow grounder from Bishop to Suffolk shortstop Sean Cameron (Milford, Conn.) then allowed Cornwell to cross the plate, giving the Engineers a two-run lead.
MIT tacked on a couple more runs in the eighth after loading the bases with no outs. Cornwell knocked a sacrifice fly for the Engineers' third run while a throwing error on the same play allowed a fourth run to cross the plate.
The Rams had their opportunities to cut into the MIT lead but left five men on base, including runners in scoring position in the 6th, 7th and 8th innings.
(Story courtesy of ECAC Sports Communications)