WORCESTER, Mass. – The Clark University baseball team (2-0) opened their 2024 season with a pair of victories over Elms (0-2) on Sunday afternoon from Granger Field.  

Game One: Clark 9, Elms 0

• Senior Maxwell Gitlin took the mound for the Cougars in game one and forced a double play to end the first inning and shut down the Blazers in order to open the second.
• Sophomore Brayden Hollinrake recorded Clark's first hit of the season in the bottom of the second with a single up the middle, but Elms got out of the inning.
• After another scoreless Gitlin inning, the Cougars scored three runs as graduate student Ryan Caulfield drove in seniors Billy Sullivan and Sam Farrell and sophomore Dom Mariani singled to left field. Scoring Caulfield as Clark led 3-0.
• Gitlin got out of jams in the fourth and fifth inning and pitched a scoreless sixth before the Cougars plated six runs as Hollinrake, Sullivan, Caulfield, and Mariani each recorded RBI's as the scarlet and white came away with a 9-0 victory.
• Gitlin registered a complete game shutout and recorded nine strikeouts.
• Caulfield led the team with four RBI's and added a pair of hits.
• Holinrake and Jones each tallied two hits.

Game Two: Clark 8, Elms 7

• Sophomore Tommy Flaherty got the ball for the Cougars and retired the side in order in the first and in the bottom of the inning, junior Carter Doran registered an RBI single and a two-run homer from Hollinrake to left field gave Clark a 3-0 lead.
• In the bottom of the second, Caulfield recorded a single to center field that plated Jones to give the team a 4-0 edge.
• After Elms added a run in the top of the third, sophomore Nicolo Mainardi and Jones each recorded RBI's to give the scarlet and white a 6-1 lead in the bottom of the third.
• The Blazers scored six runs in the top of the fourth and after Caulfield singled and stole second, Elms got out the jam.
• In the bottom of the sixth, Doran singled to right field to score Caulfield and Hollinrake drove in the winning run driving in Mariani to take an 8-7 lead.
• Graduate student Benjamin Spencer closed out the game in the top of the seventh and sophomore James Webster threw out a runner for the third out as Clark won 8-7.
• Caulfield recorded three hits and scored a pair of runs.
• Hollinrake added three RBI's and Doran registered two RBI's.

What's Next
The Cougars will open their spring break trip on Saturday morning against Fontbonne beginning at 9:15 a.m. from NorthEast Regional Park.