Wamboldt	Murphy
Velotta	Beaton

MEDFORD, Mass. -- The Bates College baseball team fell 9-1 at Tufts University in both teams' NESCAC East Division opener on Friday at Huskins Field, as Jumbos pitcher Pat O'Donnell came one out shy of a complete-game victory.

O'Donnell hurled 8 2/3 innings, allowing one run and striking out 13 with no walks, lifting Tufts to 3-9 and dropping Bates to 2-7.

Alex Perry led the Tufts offense with two hits, two runs scored and two RBIs. He hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning to put Tufts up 4-1. They had fallen behind 1-0 in the third after Bates sophomore DH Luke Wamboldt (Sunderland, Mass.) led off with a single. He later scored on the third single of the inning by sophomore CF Pat Murphy (Cape Elizabeth, Maine).

Tufts overtook the Bobcats with two runs in the bottom of the third on a one-out double by Kevin Casey, a walk to David Leresche, an RBI single by Corey Pontes and a Bates error.

The Bobcats had their share of base runners against O'Donnell, who recorded a 1-2-3 second and struck out the side in the eighth. He was stingy with men on base. Holding a 5-1 lead in the seventh, O'Donnell got a ground out with the bases loaded to end a Bobcat threat. He couldn't quite finish the game, surrendering a one-out single to first-year 3B Mike Ciummei (Acton, Mass.) and a single to sophomore RF Rich Velotta (Fairfield, Conn.) in the ninth. Chris DeGoti came on and got the final out on a called third strike.

Tufts had scored a single run in the sixth when Chase Rose led off with a double and scored when Bates misplayed a bunt by Sam Sager. Nate Bankoff led off a four-run Tufts eighth with a home run. Leresche later plated two with a double.

In addition to Perry, Casey and Rose also had two hits each for the Jumbos.

Junior SS Tom Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.), Murphy and Velotta had two hits apiece for the Bobcats. First-year pitcher Karl Alexander (Cambridge, Mass.) started for Bates, allowing eight hits and five runs in six innings while taking the loss.

STATS: Tufts 9, Bates 1