BEVERLY, Mass. -- Junior Jack Brennan homered and tallied three hits in the Bates baseball team's 6-1 loss at No. 10 nationally ranked Endicott Wednesday afternoon. 

Brennan (West Hartford, Conn.) led off the game and worked the count full against Endicott starter John Connolly. He turned on an inside fastball and ripped it over the left field fence for a solo home run, the third long ball of his collegiate career, as Bates (3-1) grabbed an early 1-0 lead. 

But the Gulls (3-0) answered right away against Bates starting pitcher junior Luke Linnehan (Hingham, Mass.) when Caleb Shpur hit a solo home run of his own with one out in the bottom of the first, tying the score at 1-1.

Linnehan (1-1) settled down and got through the first two innings without any further damage. But Endicott grabbed the lead for good in the bottom of the third. With runners at the corners and one out, Nicolas Notarangelo singled up the middle for the go-ahead run. Then with two away, Jake Nardone singled in another run, making the score 3-1. 

Down by two, the Bobcats chased Connelly from the game in the top of the fourth. With one out, senior captain Tyler Attal (Los Angeles) singled up the middle. Sophomore Brandon Biggane (Rensselaer, N.Y.) followed with a walk and the Gulls went to the bullpen, bringing in Chris Jenkins (1-0) to put out the fire. Attal stole third, but a 4-6-3 double play ended the threat for the Bobcats.

First-year Max Dio (Wellfleet, Mass.) relieved Linnehan to start the bottom of the fourth. The 'Gulls once again put runners at the corners, and a wild pitch made the score 4-1. But Dio was dominant after that. The rookie tossed four innings of one-run ball, striking out five, and allowing just two hits. He retired nine batters in a row at one point. 

The Bobcats had numerous chances to rally throughout the contest, but Bates ended up leaving eight runners on base. Endicott pitching struck out 14 Bates hitters on the afternoon. 

Endicott added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth, but reliever Max Tarlin didn't need them, striking out all six batters he faced to earn the save. 

Brennan finished 3-3 with the home run, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base. Junior Christopher Cimino (Scarborough, Maine) went 1-3 with a walk and a steal. Biggane finished 1-3 with a double and a walk. The Bobcats tallied six hits as a team while the Gulls finished with 10 hits.

Bates is back in action Sunday when the Bobcats visit RPI for a doubleheader that gets underway at 12pm.