No. 16/24 Baseball reaches 40 wins with 15-4 victory over UMass Lowell on Tuesday

LOWELL, Mass. – The No. 16/24 Bryant University baseball team scored 13 runs in the first three innings and never looked back as it earned its 40th win of the season with a 15-4 victory over UMass Lowell Tuesday night at LeLacheur Park.

The Bulldogs' 40 regular-season victories tie a program record for the most during a regular season and they have now won 40+ games in three of the last four seasons. Bryant (40-10) won its 40th game on the final day of the regular season in 2013 and in the first game of the NEC Tournament in 2014. The Bulldogs finished the game with 19 hits and have now won seven-straight games against the River Hawks (18-31).

Every player in Bryant's starting lineup collected a hit, seven scored a run and six drove in a run in the contest. Senior AJ Zarozny (Shrewsbury, Mass.) finished 3-for-5 with two doubles, classmate Robby Rinn (Warwick, R.I.) went 3-for-6 with two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored and junior Brandon Bingel (Peabody, Mass.) was 3-for-6 with two runs scored. Zarozny now has seven doubles in eight games since returning from injury and Rinn's two doubles give him a career-high 22 on the season.

Freshman Nick Angelini (Bedford, N.H.) finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two walks, senior Buck McCarthy (Saugus, Mass.) was 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBI and three runs scored, junior Cole Fabio (Mahwah, N.J.) had three hits and sophomore Mickey Gasper (Merrimack, N.H.) hit his second home run, scored twice and drove in two.

Bryant didn't waste any time, scoring its first run just two batters into the game. Angelini singled to start the game and Zarozny scored him with a long double to dead center. The Black and Gold then loaded the bases with two outs and senior Dan Cellucci (Sudbury, Mass.) unloaded them with a bases-clearing triple to right center. It was his second triple of the season and he now has 16 RBI in his last seven games.

In the second, the Black and Gold sent 11 men to the plate and scored six runs on six hits. Angelini singled and Zarozny doubled to open the inning before Rinn scored both with a double down the right field line. McCarthy then launched his seventh home run of the season, a two-run shot, to left center to make it 8-0. UML made a pitching change but Bingel greeted him with a single and Gasper sent the very next pitch well over the right field wall for a two-run home run and a 10-0 Bryant lead.

The River Hawks picked up two runs in the bottom of the second but the Bulldogs responded with three more in the top of the third. Rinn clubbed his 22nd double, a slashing line drive to left center, to open the inning and McCarthy followed with a booming double off the base of the center field fence to score him. Senior Zach Wood (Griswold, Conn.) brought home the final two runs of the inning with a two-out single up the middle.

Bryant scored its final two runs of the game in the sixth. Rinn drove in a run with a single and junior Joe Paparelli (Preston, Conn.) scored on a wild pitch.

Redshirt-junior Garrison Banas (Hadley, Mass.) pitched the first four innings to earn his third win of the season. He allowed two runs on three hits, walked five and struck out four. Classmate Oliver Powers (Newtown, Conn.), sophomore Logan Lessard (Cromwell, Conn.), senior Michael Marshall (Maynard, Mass.), sophomore Ross Weiner (Woodbridge, Conn.) and sophomore Justin Snyder (Georgetown, Mass.) all pitched an inning of relief. 

The Bulldogs wrap up their regular season this weekend with a four-game series at Mount St. Mary's. The series is scheduled to begin on Thursday with a first pitch at 3:00 p.m.