Even the constant downpour that blanketed Huskins Field throughout Tuesday afternoon could not extinguish the Jumbos' hot bats, which surged to a nine-run victory over non-conference opponent UMass Dartmouth to give Tufts its eighth win in 10 games.
"We played well enough to win," coach John Casey said, concisely summarizing the 12-3 victory.
Though the final tally was lopsided, the first half of the game was rather tight. The Corsairs plated two runs in the opening inning, as senior Casey Askeland made Tufts pay for sophomore shortshop David Leresche's error, tripling to deep right center.
But the Jumbos responded quickly with a run of their own in the bottom of the first frame. Sophomore Ian Goldberg led off the inning with a single, later scoring the first of his three runs on an RBI fielder's choice by sophomore Chase Rose.
UMass Dartmouth was able to pad its lead to 3-1 in the second inning, using a leadoff single by sophomore Matt Ryan and the soggy conditions to its advantage. Junior co-captain catcher Alex Perry's throw on an ensuing steal attempt sailed into center field and trickled under the glove of senior Dave Katzman, allowing Ryan to come all the way around to score.
That run would be the Corsairs' last of the game, however, as the Jumbos' bullpen contributed its best collective effort of the season. Five Tufts relievers combined to toss seven scoreless innings -- after a two-inning outing by sophomore starter Pat O'Donnell -- scattering a hit, five walks and two hit batsmen while striking out seven.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the bullpen's gem was the "pick-me-up" mentality that sophomore Jack Dilday brought to the mound in a potentially perilous fifth inning. The Jumbos entered the frame ahead 5-3, but junior Tom Hill struggled with his control and issued two walks without retiring a batter. Casey then handed the ball over to Dilday with the go-ahead run at the plate, and the hard-throwing righty did his best Harry Houdini impersonation, escaping from the jam to preserve the two-run lead.
"I just went out there knowing that if I threw strikes, my defense would make the plays for me, and all I needed to do was focus on the [catcher's] glove," Dilday said.
Though Dilday first poured gasoline on the fire by hitting a batter and loading the bases with zero outs, he proceeded to extinguish the flames by sandwiching a strikeout between a check-swing lineout and groundball to third.
The Jumbos put at least one run on the board in each of the last four innings, ensuring that their victory would never again be in danger. Rose led the team with four RBIs, three of them coming on a home run over the right-field fence in the third inning that gave Tufts its first lead of the game. Junior Nate Bankoff, Perry and senior co-captain Kevin Casey each drove in a pair, contributing to the team's 12-run, 14-hit effort.
Sophomore Ed Bernstein -- who pitched the third and fourth innings, allowing a hit and two walks while fanning three -- earned the win in the contest, improving to 2-0 on the season. UMass Dartmouth junior Nial Mitchell suffered his first loss of the season, as the Jumbos tagged him for five runs on five hits and four walks, dropping the Corsairs to 7-21.
Dilday was confident that Tuesday's win would set a positive tone for this weekend's crucial three-game series at NESCAC rival Colby.
"With the importance of this coming weekend, I think our entire team did a good job in preparing for Colby," he said. "Our pitching staff threw well, and our offense played solid baseball and put up 12 runs. I think it was a positive step toward a successful weekend."
The Jumbos are now 13-15 on the season (4-5 in NESCAC play) and in control of their own destiny with respect to earning a NESCAC tournament berth. They currently hold the tiebreaker with Bowdoin, from whom Tufts took two out of three at Huskins Field this past weekend. Should the Jumbos sweep last-place Colby, they would automatically earn a place in the tournament.
