WORCESTER, Mass. – Clark University baseball opened up the 2021 home slate on Sunday as the visiting Coast Guard Academy Bears came away with a pair of victories to begin NEWMAC play, taking game one in a 6-4 final score and closing out the doubleheader with a 16-9 result at Granger Field. 

Clark, playing as the visiting team, took an early lead in game one as graduate Collin Porter (Brookfield, Conn.) roped an RBI double to left field to bring home classmate Dylan Horn (Sterling, Conn.) Coast Guard responded in the bottom half of the inning as a two-run homer to left field from Tom Ankers (Manassas, Va.) made it a 2-1 game. 

Senior captain Nick Guarino (New Haven, Conn.) settled in over the next three innings, striking out four of his seven batters and scattering four hits. The Cougars gained control in the top of the fifth inning, sending nine batters to the plate and scoring three runs on three hits, including an RBI single from Horn for a 4-2 lead. 

Coast Guard knotted the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the fifth inning, starting with a lead-off solo homer from Blake Carroll (Land O'Lakes, Fla.). The Bears plated a pair to jump ahead in the bottom of the seventh inning with Carroll coming up again, making it a 6-4 lead with an RBI single to left field. The Bears held on as Lukas Caskey (Frisco, Tex.) tossed a two-inning save, allowing only a pair of baserunner for the 6-4 win in game one. 

Coast Guard maintained the energy in game two, scoring the first run in the bottom of the first inning on a two-out RBI single from Cody Fidler (Temple, Pa.). From there, the Bears struck for 14 runs combined in the third, fifth and seventh innings. 

The Cougars had a bright spot late in the game as a group of newcomers closed the gap on the scoreboard, starting in the eighth inning as an RBI double from sophomore Anthony Keefe (Plymouth, Mass.) and a two-out RBI single from first-year Billy Sullivan (Hicksville, N.Y.) put the first runs on the board for the Cougars. Senior Derek Lefebvre (Groton, Mass.) pushed across another run later in the inning, picking up his first ribbie of the season with a single to bring home Sullivan. 

Clark's group of newcomers weren't done as the team posted six more runs in the top of the ninth inning, highlighted by another RBI double from Keefe and a two-run double off the bat of sophomore Randall Safron (Easthampton, Mass.). Sullivan followed up with another two-out knock, this time an RBI single before a two-run single from Ethan Belt (Newbury, Mass.) shrunk the deficit to the 16-9 final score. 

Game Details:

Score: Coast Guard 6, Clark 4 (GM1) ; Coast Guard 16, Clark 9 (GM2)

Records: Clark University (0-2) // Coast Guard (2-0)

Location: Granger Field (Worcester, Mass.)

Clark Game One Highlights:

• The Cougars offense finished game one with nine hits with six of those coming from Horn, Porter, and Trevor Ham (North Andover, Mass.) who each collected a pair of base knocks.

• Ham tied a previous game-high of two base hits, doing so for the third time in his career after putting together a pair of two-hit games last season.

• Despite a no-decision, Guarino tallied seven strikeouts in four innings of work during his season-debut. 

• Sophomore Max Moss (Manhattan, N.Y.) tied a previous career-high of four strikeouts during his 2.2 innings of relief. 

Clark Game Two Highlights:

• First-years Cory Giannelli (Essex Junction, Vt.) and Heath Cockburn (Durham, Maine) each picked up their first collegiate hits with ninth-inning singles.

• Sullivan had a strong college debut for the Cougars, finishing 3-for-3 at the dish including a pair of RBI. He also flashed leather in the field with a quick-reaction diving play to end the bottom of the eighth inning. 

• Keefe put together his first career multi-hit game with the sophomore swatting a pair of doubles to go with two RBI and two runs scored. 

• Senior right-hander Sean Savage (Berkley Heights, N.J.) made his first appearance of the season with a scoreless frame of relief including two strikeouts. 

Up Next:

Clark returns to the diamond on March 27 for a road NEWMAC doubleheader with Wheaton College starting at 12:00 PM. Coast Guard is scheduled to take on Emerson on March 27 at 12:00 PM.