BOCA RATON, Fla. – Stan DeMartinis III had six hits in six at-bats, and
Brendan Sencaj reached base four time to lead the Bentley baseball team to a 12-9 win over Molloy in 11 innings Friday afternoon. Lynn hosted the game.
Patrick Purcell led off the top of the 11
th inning with a single, and
Jack Matthews reached base on a throwing error by the shortstop.
Tommy Bolton laid down a sacrifice bunt to put runners on second and third with one away. Sencaj delivered a go-ahead base hit that scored Purcell, and Matthews touched home plate on a single by
Jared Berardino.
The Falcons tacked on another run in the 11
th inning when a
Jake Maydak single brought Sencaj home.
The Falcons took a 1-0 lead in the first inning.
Jared Berardino hit a two-out single, and he came in to score the game's first run on a double by DeMartinis.
Molloy quickly responded with four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Bentley got one of those runs back in the next frame when Jake Matthews hit an RBI single to plate
David VanderZouwen.
Momentum shifted into Bentley's favor in the fourth inning, when the Falcons rallied for four runs. VanderZouwen began the rally with a leadoff single, and he moved into scoring position thanks to a sacrifice bunt by
Patrick Purcell. Matthews followed with an infield single. Although VanderZouwen stayed at second on the hit, he moved to third base on a long fly out by
Tommy Bolton.
With runners on the corners, Sencaj drew a walk to load the bases for Berardino. The Rowley, Mass. native cleared the bases with one swing – a triple to right-center field. Berardino wasn't on third for long, as he came in to score on a single hit by DeMartinis to give Bentley a 6-4 lead.
Molloy rallied for three runs in the sixth inning, and Bentley held a 9-8 lead entering the home half of the ninth inning. However, the Lions plated the tying run to force extra innings.
Sencaj finished the game 1-for-3 with three walks. He scored three times. Berardino finished the game 2-for-6 with six RBI, and Purcell had a three-hit game.
Joey Sangiuolo earned the win by allowing just one earned run in 5.1 innings out of the bullpen. Â
The Falcons have scored exactly 12 runs three time this season, and they have done so in consecutive games.
Bentley's Florida trip continues Saturday, March 7, with a non-conference game against New Haven at the Santaluces Sports Complex in Lantana, Fla.
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