Ephs Win Big at Home Versus MCLA 11 to 3

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Williams Baseball broke open a tight game with three multi-run innings to cruise past MCLA, 11–3, in a non-conference match up on Tuesday afternoon at Bobby Coombs Field. The win was the 300th win at Williams for head coach Bill Barrale.

The Ephs wasted no time jumping ahead in the bottom of the first. Ryan Nakajima led off with a single and later scored on James O'Connor's RBI single through the right side. Hank Jacobus came around next, scoring on a JH Vaughan sacrifice fly to center field to make it 2–0.

On the mound, Matt Keene earned the win with five solid innings of work, allowing three earned runs on seven hits while striking out three and walking none. After MCLA tied the game 2–2 in the top of the fourth, Keene limited the damage and handed the ball off to a lights-out Eph bullpen that tossed four shutout innings to close the game.

MCLA struck back with three runs in the fourth, highlighted by a solo homer from designated hitter Joshua Bissaillo and RBI hits from Roshuan Warriar and Caleb Welcome. But Williams responded immediately with a three-run fifth inning, all coming after the lead off man was retired. O'Connor drove in Nakajima with a ground out, Jacobus scored on a misplay by the shortstop, and Sasha Palma delivered an RBI double down the right field line to plate Vaughan, pushing the Ephs back in front 5–3.

The offense kept coming. In the sixth, Jacobus ripped an RBI double to left-center and scored on an infield single by Anthony Lods. Then in the seventh, Williams sent ten men to the plate and tacked on four more runs. Nakajima grounded out to bring home a run, Jacobus singled in two more, and O'Connor capped his three-RBI day with a double to the gap to score Jacobus for the third time.

Jacobus finished 3-for-4 with four runs scored, three RBIs, a walk, and a double. Nakajima went 2-for-5 with three runs scored and an RBI, while O'Connor added two hits and a stolen base to his three runs batted in. Palma chipped in two hits of his own, including the key double in the fifth.

On the mound, after Keene's five-inning start, the bullpen quartet of Issey Gestel, Daniel Okstein, Jake Jeffries, and Peyton Rose combined to allow just four base runners over the final four innings. Rose closed things out with a scoreless ninth that included two strikeouts.

With the win, Williams picked up its fourth win in a row. They have one more game in the regular season, before NESCAC playoffs, versus the University of Hartford tomorrow, starting at 4 PM. at home.