Baseball vs. MIT
Friday, April 13 | O'Brien Field | Cambridge, Mass. | 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 14 | Govoni Field | Babson Park, Mass. | 12/3 p.m.
THE SERIES
Babson and MIT will meet for a three-game set starting on Friday afternoon in Cambridge. The Beavers are 48-36-1 all-time against the Engineers in a series that dates back to 1980, and won four of five matchups between the teams last season.
LAST MEETING
Jack Halpin '17 and junior Brian McHale combined to drive in six runs, while sophomore Sean Harrington went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI as the Beavers defeated MIT, 14-8, to close out the NEWMAC Tournament championship series on May 7, 2017, in Babson Park. Jake Weiss '17 scored had two hits and scored four times for the Green and White, which busted the game open with a seven-run eighth inning. Austin Filiere went 3-for-5 with a home run for ht Engineers.
LAST MIT WIN
Filiere hit a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Engineers rallied to defeat Babson, 7-5, in the opening game of a doubleheader on April 15, 2017, in Cambridge. Junior Patrick Callahan allowed three earned runs on seven hits over 7.0 innings to earn the win for MIT. Arena homered and Weiss reached base four times and scored twice for the Beavers.
SCOUTING THE ENGINEERS
MIT (13-6, 8-1 NEWMAC) had its eight-game winning streak snapped in a 5-1 loss to Worcester State on Thursday. Garrett Greenwood went 2-for-4 for the Engineers, who were limited to a season-low five hits. First-year Ethan Rolland is batting .373 with three extra-base hits and nine runs batted in, senior David Heller is hitting .357 with seven doubles, two triples and 20 RBI, and sophomore David Allison enters the weekend with a .296 average to go along with six doubles, four homers and 17 runs driven in. Classmate Jared Tramontano (0-0, 0.57 ERA) has one save and 22 strikeouts in 15.2 innings pitched, while Greenwood, who is batting .345 out of the leadoff spot, has gone 2-0 with a 1.44 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 25.0 innings.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
Babson (18-8, 8-2 NEWMAC) had its 11-game winning streak snapped in an 11-2 loss at eighth-ranked UMass Boston on Thursday. Sophomore Aidan Scott went 3-for-4 and senior Ryan Arena homered for the Beavers, who had not lost since March 24. Arena is batting .369 with nine doubles, seven homers and 29 runs batted in, sophomore Sean Harrington has a .516 on-base percentage to go along with nine extra-base hits and 20 RBI, and McHale is hitting .337 with 13 extra-base hit and 19 runs driven in. Junior Connor Gill is 3-1 with a 3.23 ERA in 30.2 innings, while senior Matt Cuneo is 1-0 with three saves and 1.93 ERA in 10 appearances out of the bullpen.
CONFERENCE RESET
Just past the midway point of the league schedule, two of the hottest teams in New England enter the weekend separated by just a half-game in the standings. Both Babson and MIT can clinch a NEWMAC Tournament berth this weekend and the winner of the three-game series will take control of the conference regular season title race.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Senior Mark Webber and sophomore Jake Oliger have a hit in 14 and 12 straight games, respectively, while Arena enters the weekend riding an eight-game hitting streak.
STRENGTH ON STRENGTH
The Beavers, who are averaging 9.4 runs and lead the NEWMAC in extra-base hits (44), batting average (.334) and on-base percentage (.413) will have their work cut out for them against one of the league's best pitching staffs. The Engineers boast a 2.25 ERA in conference play and are averaging a NEWMAC-best 8.90 strikeouts per nine innings. The Green and White has fanned just 43 times in its first 10 league contests.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
The Beavers are 15-2 this season when outhitting their opponents.
