HARTFORD, Conn. -- Senior Brad Reynolds and junior Sam Maliska combined to limit Trinity College to two unearned runs on six hits, leading the Bates baseball team to a 9-2 win in the opening game of a crucial three-game series on Friday.

Junior Nate Pajka (Douglas, Mass.) and first-year Brendan Fox (West Hartford, Conn.), the eighth and ninth batters in Bates' order, scored three runs apiece. Pajka was 2-for-5 and Fox was 1-for-2 with an RBI double, and he reached on two of Trinity's seven errors in the game.

Reynolds (Lafayette, Colo.) rose to 4-1 with his 5.2-inning performance, giving up two unearned runs on four hits and three walks while striking out two Bantams. The righthanded Maliska (Palo Alto, Calif.) took over for Bates' lefthanded ace with two outs in the sixth and finished the game, going 3.1 shutout innings for his first save.

The Bobcats are 11-4 since March 15 and are now basically tied with Colby for second place in the NESCAC East Division, with a 3-2 record -- the Mules are 4-3 with Friday's 10-1 loss to Tufts.

The Bantams dropped their second straight league game to move to 9-15 overall and 3-7 in conference play.

Junior Rockwell Jackson (Fort Worth, Texas) was 2-for-5, joining Pajka to lead Bates' nine-hit attack. Sophomore Berto Diaz (Carson, Calif.) drove in two runs, with a sacrifice fly in the fifth and a fielder's choice in the eighth.

Bates opened the scoring in the top of the first as senior Kevin Davis (North Andover, Mass.) sent a two-out fly ball to left that was misplayed, allowing senior Griff Tewksbury (Concord, N.H.) to come around and score after singling. 

The Bobcats built their lead to four in the top of the fifth as an error, a sac fly and a wild pitch brought runners across the plate. With no outs and runners on first and second, Fox laid down a sacrifice bunt attempt that was thrown away by the Bantams, bringing the first run home. Later in the frame, Diaz hit a sac fly to right and Fox came around to score on the ensuing at bat, as an errant pitch made its way to the backstop.

In the top of the sixth, Bates scored three more runs on an RBI double by Fox and a two-out error by Trinity that allowed two Bobcats to come charging home. In the home half of the frame, the Bantams got on the board as catcher Scott Cullinane lined an RBI single up the middle and Colton Dana hit an RBI groundout that deflected off the pitcher and ended up on the glove of Bates sophomore first basemen Evan Czopek (Portland, Ore.).

In the top of the eighth, the Bobcats capped the scoring as Diaz grounded into a fielder's choice that plated a run, and Fox came around scored for the second time on a wild pitch.

Bates will go for the series win in a doubleheader beginning Saturday at 12pm in Hartford.