CLAREMONT, Calif. -- The Bates baseball team banged out 20 hits, including nine for extra bases, en route to a 15-4 win at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Tuesday, rising to 2-0 on the Bobcats' California trip.
The Bobcats were 15-31 with runners on base and 11-24 with runners in scoring position, led by a 4-6 performance from senior Nate Pajka (Douglas, Mass.) in the victory. Pajka homered in the ninth inning, his second home run in as many games for Bates and the 12th of his career.
The Bobcats got on the board in the first inning when junior
Samuel Warren (Norfolk, Va.) tripled to right center field, and scored on a
Mekae Hyde (Lewiston, Maine) ground out to second. Â Bates added another run in the second when
Sam Berry (South Hamilton, Mass.) singled to right, stole second, and came home on an
Eric Vilanova (Bridgeport, Conn.) double down the line.
After a three-run third inning, the Bobcats really put the lid on it with a five-run fifth inning. Warren walked and stole his second base of the game, later scoring on a Hyde double. Pajka followed with another single to move Hyde to third. Evan Czopek (Portland, Ore.) came up with a two-run double to left center field, scoring Pajka and first-year Reed Mszar (Manassas, Va.), who was pinch running for Hyde.
After a wild pitch, Czopek proceded to score on a first-year Asher MacDonald (Hillsborough, N.C.) double to left, who moved to third on a Berry single. Vilanova followed with another single, driving home MacDonald and giving the Bobcats a 10-1 advantage through five innings.
Lefty Rob DiFranco (Melrose, Mass.) threw the first two innings for the Bobcats and picked up the win, followed by Mark Cunningham (Canton, Mass.), who pitched the third and fourth frames. Matt Doyle (Northborough, Mass.) and Robert Jones (South Berwick, Maine) also made appearances on the mound, and Connor Colombo (Mendon, Mass.) tossed the final two frames.
The Bobcats return to action Wednesday at Pomona-Pitzer at 5:30pm Eastern.
