After 3-0 Series Loss, Baseball Snaps Losing Streak

Playing in their second NESCAC series of the season, Amherst’s baseball team was swept at home against Hamilton in three straight games on Friday, April 8, and Sunday, April 10. They then picked up their sixth win of the season in a momentum-building 6-5 victory over Salve Regina University on Monday, April 11.

In contrast to their fast starts from the previous week, the Mammoths were sluggish coming out of the gates against Hamilton.

In the series opener against the Continentals on Friday, the Mammoths quickly fell behind 5-0 after the first two innings. After going hitless through the first three innings of play, the Mammoths responded with a three-run bottom of the fourth inning, with runs coming off a Ryan McIntyre ’25 RBI single and a Christian Fagnant ’24 two-run double, to cut the lead to two. However, the Continentals broke the game open in the following innings, scoring the next 11 runs of the game, including eight in the eighth inning, to take a 16-3 lead. The Mammoths were able to add one run in the eighth and three runs in the ninth, but it was too little too late as they fell by a final score of 16-7.

Sachin Nambiar ’22 started for the Mammoths and pitched 1.2 innings, allowing eight hits and five earned runs. He was credited with the loss, bringing his record to 0-3 on the season. Tyson Luna ’25 was solid in relief, allowing three earned runs over five innings while giving up just four hits and tallying four strikeouts.

Originally scheduled for Saturday, the last two games of the series were pushed to Sunday due to thunderstorms.

Hamilton jumped out to another early lead in the first game of the doubleheader, which was a seven-inning game. The Continentals scored the first seven runs of the ballgame, plating one in the first inning, three in the third, and four in the fourth. The Mammoths managed to score three runs of their own in the bottom half of the fourth inning, but the Continentals responded right back with three more runs in the fifth to extend their lead to 10-3. They managed to add on an additional three runs in the final two innings, while the Mammoths did not register a hit in the final two frames. The game ended with a final score of 13-3.

Nick Giattino ’24 got the start and was tagged with his second loss of the season, bringing his record to 2-2. He went four innings, allowing six hits and four walks with five strikeouts. Giattino allowed nine runs through his four innings of work, though only four were earned. Six of the Continentals’ 13 total runs were unearned, and nine were scored with two outs. The Mammoths finished with three total errors and were outhit 13-5.

In the final game of the series, a nine-inning contest, Hamilton repeated their early outbursts from the previous two games by jumping out to a 6-0 lead after the first three innings, scoring one run in the first, two in the second, and three in the third. The Mammoths battled back, however. They scored one run in the third off a Jackson Reydel ’23 RBI single, two runs in the sixth off a Jack Dove ’23 RBI single and a Fagnant sacrifice fly, and added two more in the eighth off a clutch Jack McDermott ’25 two-out two-run double to make the score 6-5 heading into the final frame. The Continentals added an insurance run in the top half of the ninth, and the Mammoths could not put together a rally in the bottom half, going down in order to cement their 7-5 loss.

Jacob Ribitzki ’24 started for the Mammoths and registered the loss, bringing his record to 2-2 on the year. He gave up six runs (five earned runs) on nine hits through 6.2 innings pitched, though all of the runs allowed came in the first three innings.

The Mammoths had no time to dwell on their results, as less than 24 hours after the final game against Hamilton ended, they took on Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island. The Mammoths once again allowed their opponents to take an early lead, as the Seahawks scored a run in both the first and second innings. The Mammoths then got on the board in the third inning. Christian Limon ’24 led off with a walk, and Daniel Qin ’22 drove him in on an RBI double to cut their deficit in half.

After starting pitcher Ben Goff ’25 got out of a jam with two runners on and no outs in the bottom half of the third, the Mammoths took the lead in the fourth inning. McDermott led off the inning with a single, but the next two Mammoths were retired via groundouts. With two outs in the frame, Camden New ’24 stepped up to the plate and launched a no doubt home run to left field to propel the Mammoths to a 3-2 lead. On the very next pitch, Jack Sampedro ’25 ripped a home run of his own to essentially the same spot as New’s for back-to-back homers on back-to-back pitches, extending the Mammoths’ lead to 4-2. The Mammoths added two more crucial runs in the fifth inning, as an RBI single from McDermott that scored Jack Boyle ’25 and an RBI single from Dove to bring McDermott home brought the lead to 6-2.

The Seahawks fought back valiantly, adding a run in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings while the Mammoths failed to add any insurance runs, making it a one run deficit heading into the bottom of the ninth. Ian Donahue ’24 was called upon for the save. After hitting the leadoff batter, he shut the door on the Seahawks, getting a flyout, a groundout, and a strike out for the final three outs of the game.

Goff was stellar from the mound, going 6.0 innings and allowing three earned runs on seven hits, picking up his first collegiate win in the process. McDermott, who reached base safely in seven of eight at bats in Sunday’s games against Hamilton, went two-for-four with two runs and an RBI. Donahue earned his first save of the season.

As has been the case for much of the year, the Mammoths scored their runs in bunches. All of the Mammoths’ hits and runs were recorded in three consecutive innings. In the other six innings, the Mammoths were held without a hit, and their only baserunner reached on a dropped third strike call. The Mammoths struck out 16 times, compared to just three for the Seahawks. They made the most of their opportunities, however, leaving just three runners on base, while the Seahawks stranded nine.

Now past the halfway point of their season, the Mammoths possess an overall record of 6-13 and are 1-5 in NESCAC play. Upcoming on the schedule is a home game against Western New England University on Wednesday, April 13, and a home three-game series against NESCAC opponent Trinity on Friday, April 15 (Pride Game), and Saturday, April 16 (Vs. Cancer Game) though the games will not count towards conference records. The Mammoths will then make the short trip to Chicopee, Massachusetts, to play Elms College on Tuesday, April 19.