WEST HARTFORD, Connecticut — The University of Maine’s starting pitchers each suffered one tough inning on Saturday afternoon, enabling the University of Hartford to sweep an America East baseball doubleheader at Fiondella Field.
The Hawks used a five-run fourth to set the tone for a 6-5, 10-inning win in the opener, then the hosts scored four times in the sixth inning to post a 4-1 victory in the nightcap.
On Sunday, four Maine pitchers combined to give up 12 hits as Hartford (25-12, 8-7 AE) rolled to an 11-4 win and series sweep over the Black Bears (11-26, 2-9).
In Saturday’s first game, Chris DelDebbio belted a leadoff home run in the 10th off UMaine reliever Connor Johnson as Hartford prevailed.
The Black Bears had erased a four-run deficit, capped by a three-run eighth, but could not regain the lead.
Starter Kyle Gauthier held UMaine to five hits and a single run and struck out seven through six innings, but it was Collin Ferguson (1-1) who worked 2⅔ innings of hitless ball to close it out.
Ashton Bardzell led the Hawks with a triple, two singles and two RBIs and Erik Ostberg singled twice.
Tyler Schwanz led UMaine with two hits and four RBIs, including his game-tying, three-run home run in the eighth. Danny Casals and Brenden Geary each provided two singles.
Bears starter Logan Fullmer allowed nine hits and five runs in six innings, but surrendered six hits and five of the runs in the fourth inning. The left-handed Johnson (2-3) gave up three hits and a run in three innings of relief.
The key hits in the Hartford fourth included T.J. Ward’s two-run double, a two-run triple by Bardzell and Aaron Wilson’s run-scoring infield hit.
Trailing 5-1, UMaine got a run back in the seventh Jeremy Pena’s sacrifice fly and tied it on Schwanz’s three-run blast in the eighth.
In the nightcap, Brian Murphy (5-2) limited the Bears to five hits, striking out six and walking two while going the distance.
Ben Bengston collected three singles for Hartford, while Bardzell doubled and singled.
Pena singled twice among only five hits for UMaine in support of sophomore righty John Arel (0-7), who surrendered all four runs in the fourth inning.
Wilson reached on an infield single, David MacKinnon doubled and DelDebbio was walked intentionally. Ostberg and Chris Sullivan plated a run each with infield singles, Bengston singled to center and Ward added a run-producing groundout.
The Black Bears mustered a single run in the fifth. Schwanz walked with one out, stole second and scored on Jon Salcedo’s double to right-center.
On Sunday, Maine tied it at 3-3 in the top of the fifth when Schwanz led off with a single and advanced to third on Geary’s double to left. Schwanz scored when Sam McKay delivered a one-out wild pitch and Geary came around on Salcedo’s sacrifice bunt.
The Hawks responded with two runs in the bottom of the inning, one run each in the sixth and seventh and four more in the eighth.
Ward sparked Hartford with a solo homer while Bengston added a double, triple and three RBIs.
Geary doubled twice and singled for Maine.
McKay (3-2) pitched five innings and gave up six hits and three runs to earn the win for Hartford while Nick Silva (2-2) suffered the loss for Maine after pitching two innings in relief of Chris Murphy and allowing five hits and three runs.