Norton, Mass. - March 26, 2019 - The Springfield College baseball team jumped out to an early lead but eventually fell to host Wheaton College, 9-2, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play at Sidell Stadium on Tuesday afternoon.

With the loss, the Pride is now 6-7 overall and 2-1 in league play, while the Lyons, which were ranked No. 28 in the latest American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Division III national rankings, improves to 10-3 on the year, with a 3-0 mark against league opponents.

Sophomores Jack Simonetty (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.) and Eduardo Martinez (Southwick, Mass.) paced the Pride with one RBI apiece, while Jake Gleason (South Dennis, Mass.) went 3-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored.

Freshman Mitch Wright (Clifton Park, N.Y.) took the loss, throwing 5.0 innings, giving up 10 hits and five earned runs. Freshman Ben Arnold (Deerfield, Mass.) came on in relief and pitched 2.0 frames, holding the Lyons to just two hits while striking out a pair, before Jacob Shpur (East Canaan, Conn.) came on for the final inning, striking out two.

Springfield College jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Gleason started the rally with a double down the right-field line, before Simonetty brought home the junior with a double of his own to right field. 

Wheaton answered with runs in the bottom of the third, bottom of the fourth and bottom of the fifth to take a 3-1 lead, before opening a 5-1 lead with a pair in the bottom of the sixth, before the Pride cut its deficit to three with an RBI off the bat of Martinez, who reached on a fielder's choice that allowed Gleason to come home. 

From there, Wheaton picked up four runs in the bottom of the eighth to seal the 9-2 win over the Pride.

Springfield College will now return to Archie Allen Field on Wednesday, March 27 when it will host Dean in non-conference play at 3:30 p.m.

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