Vikings Sweep Owls Baseball; Eliminates Owls From MASCAC Championship Series

SALEM, Mass. – Salem State swept the Westfield State Owls 5-2 and 6-0 on Saturday to clinch a spot in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Baseball Championship Series next weekend. The Vikings earned the second seed and will face regular season champion Fitchburg State in a best-of-three series next weekend. It is the Vikings first trip back to the title game since 2016. Zach Piroh (Bridgeport, Conn.) belted two home runs on the day and Jack Sefrino (Dartmouth, Mass.) pitched a one-hitter in the second game to earn a berth for Salem State.  

Salem State improves to 10-7 and 5-3 in conference while Westfield State slides to 17-7 and 6-4.  Westfield, which started the year 6-0 in league play, could have secured the top seed in the conference championship series with just one win today, but instead ends up on the outside, and will finish the 2020 regular season with a pair of non-conference games against Salem tomorrow at Bud and Jim Hagan Field.

Game One

Piroh went 2-for-3, including a two-run home run and Nicholas Rector (Mantua, N.J.) pitched 6.1 solid innings as Salem State defeated Westfield State 5-2 in the first game of their scheduled MASCAC doubleheader on Saturday at Alumni Field. 

Brett Dooley (Cohasset, Mass.) knocked in Zack Graveline (Prospect, Conn.) with the first run of the game for the Owls in the top of the first. Westfield State starter Shane Bogli (Vernon, Conn.) allowed just one hit over the first two innings. However, after retiring the first two batters of the third, Jake Boucher (Cheshire, Conn) ripped a base hit to left. Piro then followed with his first home run of the season to right to put Salem State up 2-1.

A walk to Nick Martin (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and single by Bryant Dana (Lynnfield, Mass.) put runners on first and second with one out in the fourth for the Owls. A passed ball and stolen base put both runners in scoring position, but Rector pitched out of the jam, ending the threat with the Vikings still leading 2-1.

Vincenzo Camera (East Haven, Conn.) came in the sixth, relieving Bogli after a one-out single. Salem State then opened the game up with a three-run inning, scoring on a passed ball and sacrifice fly by Traverse Briana (Lynn, Mass.) before a failed pick off and error made the score 5-1.

Brock Pare (Lowell, Mass.) relieved Rector with one out and one on in the seventh. Back-to-back singles loaded the bases before Dooley brought in the Owls' second run with a sacrifice fly to center. Westfield State had the tying run at the plate, but Pare secured the win with a pop-up to short.

Rector scattered six hits and allowed two earned runs with three walks and five strikeouts in improving to 3-2 on the season. Bogli (4-1) suffered his first loss, giving up two earned runs on four hits with a walk and two strikeouts in five innings.

Graveline finished 3-for-3 with a run for the Owls. Boucher went 2-for-2 with a pair of runs for Salem State.

Game Two

Piroh gave Salem State a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first, launching his second, two-run homer of the day after a single by Boucher. Back-to-back singles by Briana and EJ Field (Gloucester, Mass.) gave the Vikings four consecutive hits off Westfield State starter Nate Langmeier (East Granby, Conn.). Shawn Rebello (Bellingham, Mass.) knocked in the third Vikings' run of the inning with a two-out single to right, but the Owls threw out Field, who attempted to score from first.   

Meanwhile, Sefrino, who gave up a first inning double to Dooley, allowed just four base runners the rest of the way, retiring 12-out-of-14 hitters at one point. Boucher made the score 4-0 in the fifth, scoring Wilbur Rosario Morel (Lynn, Mass.), who led off the inning with a base hit.  A walk and intentional walk loaded the bases for Salem State as Patrick Jordan (Reading, Mass.) replaced Langmeier. A hit-by-pitch made the score 5-0 before Jordan ended the inning on a flyout to right. Langmeier, who was 6-0 on the season, was charged with the loss after allowing five runs on seven hits with a pair of walks and a strikeout.

Burt added an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth, bringing Rebello from second with a single up the middle to complete the scoring.         

Sefrino threw a complete game, allowing just the hit with four strikeouts and walking Dana twice and Martin once with another baserunner coming from a hit-by-pitch.

Rebello and Boucher each had two hits in the game and combined for three runs scored and a pair of RBI.   

-- story courtesy Salem State sports info