PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Sophomore Jackson Curtis (Jefferson, N.H.) had four hits, including a solo home run, but Rhode Island College used a pair of strong starts to spoil Plymouth State University's Senior Day, taking both ends of a Little East Conference (LEC) baseball doubleheader at Parish Field on Friday.
 
Curtis went 2-for-3 in the opener, but RIC's game one starter, who ranks among the top pitchers in the conference, put on an overpowering performance in a 6-0 win for the Anchormen. Junior Bobby Cliche (Stratham, N.H.) was strong on the hill for the Panthers, allowing just four earned and striking out nine over eight innings of work.
 
The Anchormen relied on the long ball in game two, smacking four round trippers in the first four innings to build an early lead. Trailing 2-0 in the second, Curtis went deep for the Panthers to cut the deficit in half, but RIC's offense continued to put runs on the board in a 12-2, seven-inning win.
 
Between games, Plymouth State honored graduating seniors Max Lamora (Concord, N.H.) and Noah Wachter (Concord, N.H.) for their contributions to the baseball program.
 
Plymouth State ends the regular season with a 14-24 mark (5-11 LEC), while Rhode Island College goes to 27-8-1 and 13-3 in the Little East. The Panthers will scoreboard watch this evening to learn its potential postseason fate.
 
The Basics:

• GAME ONE: Plymouth State 0, Rhode Island College 6
• GAME TWO: Plymouth State 2, Rhode Island College 12 (7 Inn.)
  • Plymouth State (14-24, 5-11 LEC)
  • Rhode Island College (27-8-1, 13-3 LEC)

How it Happened (Game One):

• Rhode Island College jumped out to a 3-0 lead after lifting a homer over the high fence in right in the top of the first.
• The Anchormen added a run in the second and it could have been more, but Sokolski laid out to snag a shot to deep center.
• Plymouth State showed off its defense again in the third. After back-to-back singles opened the inning, junior Alex Rives (Gilford, N.H.) and Curtis turned a nifty double play and Cliche got a strikeout to squash the RIC rally.
• The visitors tacked on a pair of runs in the fifth.
• The Panthers put two on in the seventh when junior Griffin Crane (Lancaster, N.H.) reached on an error and Curtis poked a two-out single to right center, but the Anchormen got a popup to end the threat and PSU was unable to rally in the late innings.

By the Numbers (Game One):

• Curtis had two of the Panthers' three hits.
• Sokolski went 1-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to eight straight games.
• Cliche allowed just four earned (six total) over eight innings of work. He struck out nine.
• Freshman Tyler Wright (Concord, N.H.) struck out the side in the ninth.

 
How it Happened (Game Two):

• Crane smoked a two-out double in the first but was stranded.
• The Anchormen used a two out walk and two-run dinger to get on the board in the second.
• Curtis smashed a solo shot into the trees in right to cut the margin to 2-1 in the bottom of the inning.
• RIC smacked another two-run shot in the third.
• Freshman Sam Malgeri (Stratham, N.H.) walked and Sokolski extended his hitting streak in the bottom of the frame. After the runners moved up a base on a sacrifice, Crane cut the margin to 4-2 with an RBI groundout.
• Rhode Island College hit two more long balls in the fourth and added a pair of insurance runs in the fifth to make it 9-2.
• The visitors tacked on three runs in the seventh.
• PSU had runners on the corners with one down in the bottom of the frame after singles from Curtis and sophomore Joshua Welsh (East Lyme, Conn.), but could not extend the game.

By the Numbers (Game Two):

• Curtis had another two-hit game, finishing 2-for-3 with a homer. He leads the team with 14 multi-hit games.
• Sokolski, Crane and Welsh all went 1-for-3. Sokolski ends the regular season with a nine-game hitting streak.
• Malgeri worked a walk and scored a run.
• The Panthers used five pitchers in the setback. Junior Trey Parker (Lebanon, N.H.) struck out five over the first four, while classmates Eoin Hamell-Kelleher (Attleboro, Mass.) and Ethan Foster (Catskill, N.Y.) each worked an inning.
• Senior Chris Hanna (Kingston, N.H.) and junior Nick Cote (Londonderry, N.H.) teamed up to pitch the seventh.

 
Up Next:

• Plymouth State can still make the LEC Tournament should the results of this afternoon's other games work in the team's favor.

 
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