Baseball Splits Sunday Doubleheader at Monmouth

The Central Connecticut baseball team split a Northeast Conference doubleheader at Monmouth on Sunday, winning the first game 4-0 and dropping the second 10-9. Sophomore Nick Neumann picked up his first win of the season pitching a complete game shutout in the first game. In the second game the Blue Devils led 9-6, but a four-run seventh inning gave Monmouth the win. Central is now 11-9-1 overall and 6-6 in NEC action.

The Blue Devils won the first game 4-0 behind a strong complete-game pitching performance Neumann. He allowed just six hits in his seven innings of work, while striking out eight and walking only one.

Neumann's shakiest inning was the first, when the Hawks loaded the bases with no outs behind a couple of hits and a walk. Neumann answered by striking out the side, and would allow just one more Hawk to reach second base in the entire game. Neumann did not face more than four batters in innings two through six, and allowed just five batters to reach base in the final six innings.

Central had seven hits in the game. The scored a single run in the first inning on an RBI hit from freshman J.P. Sportman. They scored on in the fifth on a sacrifice fly off the bat of junior Mitch Wells, and then added two more in the sixth. Junior Jake Matuszak drove in the first run and sophomore Tyler Caserta scored on a passed ball.

In the second game the Blue Devils trailed 4-0 and then 6-2 before scoring seven runs in the sixth inning to take a 9-6 lead. The Hawks responded, and claimed the weekend series 3-1, with a four-run seventh inning and then held on for the 10-9 win.

Sophomore first baseman Andy Lalli had a pair of RBI and two runs scored in the loss. Senior second baseman Sean Miller-Jones also had a pair of hits and drove in two. Freshman Dylan DelaCruz and Wells each had two hits for the Blue Devils.

Matuszak and Sportman, along with A.J. Lowers and Normand Gosselin each added an RBI in game two.

Central returns to action at home on Wednesday vs. Iona beginning at 3 p.m.