BOX SCORE
Orono, Maine – The Hartford baseball team dropped the final game of a three-game series at Maine on Sunday by a score of 11-3, with the Black Bears (20-14, 7-0 America East) sweeping the first half of the six-game season series. Freshman Trey Stover and sophomore Brian Estevez led the Hawks (8-25, 1-5 AE), each finishing with two hits.
Hartford finished the game with seven hits total as Andy Drexel, James Alfonso and Brendan Behm each chipped in one hit. Behm and Estevez each finished with one RBI. Rookie Sean Newcomb suffered the loss, his fourth on the season (2-4 overall), pitching five innings and allowing six runs, four earned, on seven hits. He also struck out seven batters, the most by any Hawk pitcher in the three-game set at Maine.
Freddy Andujar and Charlie Moran each saw time in relief of Newcomb. Andujar pitched two middle innings allowing two earned runs on one hit and striking out one batter. Moran allowed three earned runs on two hits and a walk.
Maine struck first in the series finale scoring two runs in the bottom of the first, made possible three hits to start the game. Michael Fransoso, Colin Gay and Ian Leisenheimer each started the game with a hit in the first at bat, the third of which contributed the first run as Fransoso put the Black Bears first run on the board. Gay would become the second run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Tyler Patzalek.
All three of the Hawks runs came in the fourth inning without the visiting team registering a hit. Maine's pitching issues six free passes as the Hawks saw their entire batting order come to the plate. Behm and Estevez registered their RBIs on walks issued by starter Jeffrey Gibbs, while a wild pitch allowed Brady Sheetz to score what at the time was the go ahead run giving Hartford a 3-2 advantage.
Maine regained their lead in the bottom of the fifth with a four run inning, while adding two runs and three more in the seventh and eighth putting the game out of reach. Both runs in the seventh came courtesy of a double from Alex Calbick, while Leisenheimer led the Black Bears with three RBI total.
Hartford returns home for two mid-week games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Quinnipiac will be the first team to visit Fiondella Field on Tuesday for a 3:00 p.m. start, while Dartmouth will travel to West Hartford for a 3:00 p.m. start on Wednesday afternoon. Hartford returns to league play next weekend with a four-game series at Stony Brook. The Hawks and Seawolves are scheduled for doubleheaders on both days starting at 12:00 p.m.
