BOSTON, Mass. - A bases-loaded infield single by sophomore rightfielder Aaron Barbosa with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning capped off an unlikely rally as Northeastern University (16-21, 6-14) came from behind to edge the Tigers (20-24, 10-10) in the first game of their three-game Colonial Athletic Association series on Saturday afternoon at Friedman Diamond on Saturday afternoon.
In the nightcap, the Huskies exploded for eight runs in the sixth inning to earn a doubleheader sweep with a 10-1 victory.
In the opener, the Huskies were trailing by 4-3 entering the bottom of the ninth and they were facing sophomore righthander Chris Acker, who had pitched two hitless innings in relief.
After Acker retired the first two hitters in the ninth, he issued a walk on a 3-1 pitch to sophomore shortstop Oliver Hart. Hart advanced to second base on a passed ball. Acker appeared to have nailed down the win when senior Tucker Roeder hit a ground ball to shortstop. But Hunter Bennett made an error and the Huskies had runners on first and third with two outs. A walk to centerfielder Connor Lyons loaded the bases and brought Barbosa to the plate.
While pitching to Barbosa, Acker uncorked a wild pitch as Hart scored to tie the game at 4-4. On a 3-2 pitch, Barbosa singled to third base to drive in Roeder with the game-winning run.
The Tigers, who have been one of the top defensive teams in the CAA this season, were undone by their defense in the loss. Towson made two errors, leading to five unearned runs by the Huskies.
The Tigers' walk-off loss spoiled a very strong effort by sophomore lefthander Kyle Paul. Making his fourth start of the season, Paul scattered seven hits in six innings of work while allowing three unearned runs. He did not walk any batters and had no strikeouts.
Northeastern took advantage of a Tiger error in the third inning to score three unearned runs. With one out, Lyons started the rally with a single to left. Barbosa reached on an error by freshman first baseman Brendan Butler. After John Puttress was retired on a fly ball to right, senior Matt Miller singled to centerfield, scoring the first run of the game.
With Miller at first and Barbosa at third, the Huskies pulled off a double steal, giving them a 2-0 lead. A single by freshman Rob Fonseca upped the lead to 3-0 before Paul retired the side.
In the fifth inning, the Tigers cut their deficit to 3-2. Junior designated hitter Kurtis Voytell led off with a double to left. Sophomore third baseman Mike Draper reached base when senior lefthander Andrew Leenhouts made an error on his sacrifice bunt. When Bennett grounded into a fielder's choice, Voytell scored to make it a 3-1 game. After sophomore second baseman Pat Fitzgerald grounded out, Butler hit a sacrifice fly to right, cutting the deficit to 3-2. A walk to sophomore Dominic Fratantuono kept the rally alive but Leenhouts struck out freshman Peter Bowles to end the inning.
In the sixth inning, junior catcher Andrew Parker led off with a home run to left, his sixth of the season. Then, sophomore leftfielder Kurt Wertz belted a home run over the right field fence for a 4-3 lead.
The Tigers missed out on a chance to add another run when Voytell singled and was replaced by pinch runner Brandon Gonnella. After Draper bunted him to second base, Gonnella stole third base. But, Leenhouts stranded him at third base by striking out Bennett and retiring Fitzgerald on a ground ball to shortstop.
In 8.2 innings, Leenhouts allowed three earned runs on seven hits. He walked two and struck out nine. When he walked Fitzgerald in the ninth inning, he was relieved by senior righthander Sam Berg. Berg recorded the final out in the ninth and ended up earning the win.
Northeastern outhit Towson in the opener, 8-7. Fratantuono and Voytell led the Tigers with two hits each.
The victory ended Northeastern's six-game losing streak while Towson lost its fourth game in a row.
In the nightcap, junior righthander Michael Trionfo was sailing along and entered the sixth inning with a 1-0 lead and a two-hit shutout. However, the Huskies sent 12 batters to the plate en route to an eight-run outburst.
Junior Jon Leroux opened the inning by reaching base when he was hit by a pitch. After Lyons drew a walk, Barbosa reached base with a bunt single, loading the bases.
Senior John Puttress drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game before Miller singled to centerfield, giving the Huskies a 3-1 lead. When Fonseca followed with a two-run triple, Northeastern owned a 5-1 advantage.
After Fonseca's triple, Nick Cioffi came on in relief. Freshman Jason Vosler greeted him with an RBi single to make it a 6-1 lead. After Cioffi retired the next two hitters, Leroux tripled to drive in another run. An RBI double by Lyons capped off the rally as Northeastern took an 8-1 lead into the seventh inning.
Northeastern added two more runs in the eighth inning as the Huskies outhit Towson, 13-6.
The Tigers scored their only run in the second inning when Voytell walked, stole second base and scored on a single by senior Ben Winter.
While suffering his second loss in a row, Trionfo pitched five innings. He allowed six runs on five hits with three walks and four strikeouts as he dropped to 6-3 on the season.
Barbosa led Northeastern with four hits in the second game while Nick Berger and Dylan Maki combined on a six-hitter. Berger pitched six innings and allowed one run on five hits while Maki earned a save with three scoreless innings of relief.
Towson will try to avoid a three-game sweep when the Tigers face Northeastern in the series finale on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
