McCarthy, Bingel, Albanese hit two home runs each, Bulldogs set DI mark with 7 in 19-1 win over FDU

TEANECK, N.J. – Senior Buck McCarthy (Saugus, Mass.) and juniors Brandon Bingel (Peabody, Mass.)  and Matt Albanese (East Haddam, Conn.) each hit two home runs and the Bryant University baseball team hit a Division I program-record seven long balls as they cruised past Fairleigh Dickinson, 19-1, in game two of Sunday's doubleheader at the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex.

With the win, the Bulldogs (20-6, 9-1 NEC) reach the 20-win plateau and win the weekend series with the Knights (14-15, 5-6 NEC), 3-1. Bryant hit a season-high seven home runs and finished the game with 23 hits. The Bulldogs recorded 20+ hits in a game for the first time since May 3, 2015 and their 19 runs are the most since April 1, 2015 when they score 18 against Northeastern.

McCarthy finished 4-for-7 with four RBI and two runs scored, Bingel went 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored and Albanese finished 2-for-6 with a career-high six RBI. Senior Robby Rinn (Warwick, R.I.) finished 2-for-3 with two RBI, a career-high tying four runs scored, two walks and was also hit twice to reach a career-high six times. Classmate Dan Cellucci (Sudbury, Mass.) finished with a career-high five hits and sophomore Mickey Gasper (Merrimack, N.H.) also added a pair of hits on the day. Senior Dan Palazzo (Rocky Hill, Conn.) hit a pinch-hit home run in the sixth to account for Bryant's seventh home run of the game.

The Black and Gold took advantage of a wild Logan Frati to take an early lead in the second game. Seniors Zach Wood (Griswold, Conn.) and Cellucci stroked back-to-back one-out singles before a fielder's choice ground out put runners on the corners. Frati then lost his command and walked the next four batters in a row to force in three runs. Junior Cole Fabio (Mahwah, N.J.) walked on four pitches to load the bases, Bingel fell behind 0-2 before working a walk to score the first run, Rinn walked on four pitches to score the second and Albanese worked a full-count walk to make it 3-0.

Bryant then knocked Frati from the game in the fourth inning. Freshman Nick Angelini (Bedford, N.H.) beat out a ground ball to short to open the inning and Bingel launched a two-run shot to dead center two batters later to make it 5-0. Evan Layne then entered the game for FDU and McCarthy greeted him with a long home run to left field to make it 7-0.

Bingel was at it again in the very next inning as he hit his second home run of the game, a liner over the left field wall, to make it 8-1. Bryant would add another run in the inning after a potential inning-ending double play was misplayed by the Knights. With the inning extended, McCarthy drove a double into the left field corner to score a run and make it 9-1.

The Black and Gold continued their power surge in the sixth thanks to Palazzo. Cellucci singled to open the inning and Palazzo followed with a pinch-hit two-run home run to left center to make it 11-1. It was the first home run of the season for Palazzo.

Bryant added another run in the seventh on a sac fly before another long ball extended the lead to 14-1 in the eighth. Rinn singled to open the inning against reliever John Chalupa and Albanese hit the very next pitch well over the center field fence for a two-run home run.

The power display came to a close in the ninth as Albanese and McCarthy hit back-to-back home runs to push the Bryant lead to 19-1.  

Lost in the offensive onslaught was the performance of freshman lefty Steve Theetge (Cicero, N.Y.). He pitched a career-high six innings, allowing just one unearned run on three hits. Theetge walked two and struck out four on the afternoon. FDU put pressure on him in the in the first, loading the bases with one out, but Theetge induced an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play to get out of the jam. He allowed his only run of the game in the fourth. Garrison Banas (Hadley, Mass.), Ross Weiner (Woodbridge, Conn.) and Logan Lessard (Cromwell, Conn.) all tossed a scoreless inning of relief and combined to strike out seven batters.

Frati allowed a season-high six runs on five hits and walked six in just 3 1/3 innings to fall to 4-1 on the year. Matt McCann was the only Knight to register multiple hits in the game, finishing with two.

In the two games on Sunday, Bryant scored 30 runs and collected 35 hits, including seven doubles and nine home runs. Cellucci went 7-for-11, McCarthy finished 5-for-10 with three home runs and seven RBI and Rinn was 4-for-8 with three doubles and six runs scored in the two games.

The Bulldogs return to the field on Wednesday they travel to Storrs, Conn., to take on the University of Connecticut. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.