The Northeastern baseball team (0-5, 0-0 CAA) continued its winless start to the season, getting swept by the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers (5-1, 0-0 Big Ten) Feb. 21 and 22. The first matchup at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Fla. saw the Huskies defeated 12-2 and 15-5 the next day, both cut off at seven innings due to the 10-run mercy rule.
The Saturday game saw a steady start that would go on to spin out of the Huskies’ control. Despite a runless first inning, redshirt senior center fielder Harrison Feinberg singled to shortstop and stole second base to provide some momentum. Still, Northeastern wouldn’t see itself on the board until the top of the fourth.
Graduate student right-handed pitcher Andrew Wertz started on the mound for the Huskies. The roster addition from Salve Regina University went on to pitch the first four innings.
The Gophers got things going in the bottom of the second. Junior designated hitter Charlie Sutherland doubled to right field. Wertz then walked two Minnesota batters, seniors third baseman Davis Hamilton and left fielder Michael Lippe, to load the bases. Senior first baseman Jack Bello singled to left field to bring in Sutherland and Hamilton, 2-0. With Lippe on second, junior shortstop Jack Spanier doubled for Lippe to run home, 3-0.
Northeastern went down in order in the top of the third while the Gophers managed to load the bases, with Hamilton singling to center field to score junior right fielder Ty Allen and bring the score to 4-0.
The Huskies began to bite back in the top of the fourth, with Feinberg doubling to right field and junior right fielder Ryan Gerety sending one out to score Feinberg, putting Northeastern on the board. Senior designated hitter Matt Brinker made it to first on a fielder’s choice toward Gerety at second base. Redshirt freshman left fielder Anthony Ruggiero brought Gerety to third on a fly out to left field.
The Huskies’ final run of the game would come when redshirt sophomore catcher Will Fosberg grounded out to first but managed to score Gerety, leaving Northeastern trailing a respectable 4-2.
Junior right handed pitcher Cole Selvig, on the mound for the Gophers, struck out five in six innings to keep the Huskies at bay while Minnesota added runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
With the score 6-2 and the Huskies going down in order at the top of the sixth, the Gophers lit the lamp at the bottom of the inning to run away with the lead. Powered by Bello and Spanier, who went 3-for-4 with a run and two RBIs, the Gophers added four runs to make it 10-2.
The Gophers added two more runs in the bottom of the seventh, with sophomore second baseman Jameson Martin delivering a two-RBI single to score Lippe and Hamilton, closing the game out 12-2 after seven innings. Minnesota held the Huskies to a meager four hits, with Selvig striking out five Huskies and Spanier and Martin recording three hits apiece.
The Feb. 22 matchup saw the Huskies singing a different tune, at least at first. With junior right-handed pitcher Isaac Morton on the mound for the Gophers instead of Selvig, the Huskies managed to jump out to a 2-0 lead. For the Huskies, sophomore right-handed pitcher Andrew Rogovic took to the mound for his second career start.
After Morton walked senior second baseman Carmelo Musacchia and hit Gerety with a pitch, first and second were loaded. Once again, Feinberg initiated the early spark with a single to center field to pack the bases before Morton walked Ruggiero, bringing Musacchia home. Sophomore right fielder Carter Bentley then came through on a fielder’s choice that saw Ruggiero out at second, but Gerety managed to score on the play to bring the Huskies up 2-0.
The Golden Gophers added one of their own in the bottom of the first, but the Huskies doubled their lead in the second inning to hold them back. After sophomore shortstop Henry DiGiorgio walked and took second on a wild pitch, Musacchia singled to right center field. An error by center field set up DiGiorgio on third and Musacchia on second, waiting to be driven in by Gerety’s two-RBI single.
With Northeastern ahead 4-1 at the top of the second, keeping the Gophers at bay and racking up runs was the primary objective. However, storybook swings from Bello and senior center fielder/right-handed pitcher Easton Richter handed Minnesota the momentum the Huskies needed for their first win.
Allen and Hamilton each singled to right field, and they managed to take second and third on a wild pitch. Rogovic walked Lippe, and Bello nailed a grand slam to right center field to bring the Golden Gophers ahead 5-4. Shortly after, Richter sent out a homer of his own to add a run for Minnesota.
Northeastern responded in the top of the third when sophomore first baseman Eric Cha doubled to center field to score Bentley, bringing the score to 6-5. After this inning, the Gophers swapped Morton for junior right-handed pitcher Marcus Kruzan, who struck out five Huskies total.
Five different pitchers took to the Huskies’ mound, but while the bullpen carousel kept spinning, nothing would stick when it mattered. The Gophers added three more runs in the bottom of the third to go up 9-5, once again powered by RBIs from Bello and Martin.
The Huskies went the next four innings without a run while the Gophers continued to steadily build their lead until, at the bottom of the seventh, Sutherland singled to score Richter. The score was 15-5, once again triggering the 10-run mercy rule.
The Huskies’ losses to Minnesota demonstrated further inconsistency on the mound and an inability to generate hits, unfamiliar struggles for a team whose pitching staff garnered national attention only a season ago.
However, with 47 games left in the season and expectations to live up to, the Huskies will hope to take a win Feb. 27 when they take on the Grambling State Tigers (3-4, 0-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference) in Baton Rouge, La.
