Amherst, Mass. - The Colby College Baseball team took on the Mammoths of Amherst College for the first game in the best-of-three series for the NESCAC Quarterfinals on Friday afternoon.The Mules used timely hitting and dominant relief pitching to secure a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Amherst in 10 innings on Friday.
After falling behind early following a two-run second inning by Amherst, the Mules began their comeback in the fourth.
Marco Zirpolo led off the frame with a walk and later scored on a fielder's choice off the bat of
Patrick Shrake to cut the deficit to one.
Colby leveled the score in the seventh inning.
Henry Silva reached on a walk and moved into scoring position before
Tony Silva delivered a clutch two-out double to right-center, driving in the tying run.
The game remained deadlocked until the top of the 10th. T. Silva ignited the rally with his second double of the day, eventually moving to third on a ground out. With two outs,
Jeb Burkhart stepped up and laced an RBI single through the left side to give Colby the 3-2 lead.
On the mound,
Thomas Rioux kept the Mules within striking distance, throwing five innings and allowing only two runs.
Kyle Bourque was sensational in relief, tossing five scoreless innings to earn the win. Bourque navigated several jams and benefited from a sharp defensive performance that included five double plays, eventually inducing a ground out to shortstop to end the game and seal the victory. The Mules' offense was paced by T. Silva, who finished 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI. Shrake and
Corey Aubuchon also added two hits apiece in the 10-hit effort.
Colby is back in action tomorrow at 11am for the second game of the series, hoping to sweep the Mammoths to move on to the Championship Weekend.
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