America East Baseball News & Notes: Tight Race as April Begins

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We begin the month of April with UMBC on top of the league standings, but the rest of the conference isn’t far behind. It promises to be a thrilling final month and a half of the regular season as teams jockey for position and a spot in the AE Tournament. As we look ahead to the holiday weekend, only three games separate the first-place Retrievers from the last-place UAlbany Great Danes. With a race this tight, every game matters.

UMBC Retrievers (14-9, 5-1 AE)

UMBC took over the top spot in America East after a dominant sweep of the Great Danes last weekend. The Retrievers showcased both elite pitching and a potent offense.

The Sweep: On Friday, they took Game 1 with a 2-0 shutout behind a stellar performance from Zach Robinson (4-0). Robinson threw a complete game, allowing just six hits and three walks while striking out five. The bats came alive in the following two games, scoring 16 total runs to complete the sweep.
Mid-week Action: UMBC defeated George Washington (A-10) 7-4. Danny Wyatt and Derek Paris led the way with two-hit games. On the mound, Bennett Spencer (4.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO) earned the win to move to 2-0, while closer Chris Hebert (1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R) recorded his second save.
Up Next: The Retrievers play non-conference ball this weekend as they host Iona.

Bryant Bulldogs (16-10, 4-2 AE)

The Bulldogs took two of three from NJIT in a high-scoring weekend that tested both pitching staffs.

The Series: After dropping Game 1 (12-10) by surrendering six runs in the ninth, Bryant bounced back to sweep Sunday’s doubleheader.
Game 1 (Sunday): Bryant won the seven-inning contest after a three-run sixth. RBI hits from Carlos Irizarry and Hunter Kingsbury were the difference. Aidan Vining (2-0) earned the win (2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R).
Game 2 (Sunday): A wild 13-9 victory. After the bullpen surrendered five runs in the top of the eighth, Bryant answered with eight runs in the bottom half. Casey Wensley went 4-for-6 with 3 runs and 3 RBIs. For NJIT, AE Rookie of the Week Lorenzo Camilleri went 2-for-3 with a home run. Thomas Galustia (1-1) picked up the win, while Nelson Smith (0-1) took the loss.

Weekly Honors

The Bryant-NJIT series produced two of the league’s top America East performers this week:

AE Player of the Week: Casey Wensley (Bryant) went 10-for-15 (.667 AVG) with a 1.555 OPS, eight runs, and five RBIs.
AE Rookie of the Week: Lorenzo Camilleri (NJIT) slashed .636 / .733 / 1.273 with two home runs, eight RBIs, and five runs scored.

Maine Black Bears (5-20, 3-3 AE)

The Black Bears traveled to LeLacheur Park and took two of three from the UMass Lowell River Hawks (10-15, 2-4 AE).

Friday: River Hawks RHP Alfred Mucciarone was named AE Pitcher of the Week after a masterful complete-game 10-1 win. He allowed only one unearned run on four hits, walking none and striking out seven.
Saturday: Maine bounced back for a 9-5 win. JuJu Stevens was perfect at the plate (4-for-4, BB), while Gianni Gambardella (2-3) went seven innings to earn the win.
Sunday: A five-run ninth inning against UML closer Carlos Martinez propelled Maine to victory. While Stevens and Hunter St. Denis had multi-hit games, the story was Pierce Fredman (1-0), who threw four hitless, scoreless innings in relief to secure the win.

Mid-week Recap & Upcoming Schedule

UMass Lowell defeated Dartmouth 4-3 on a clutch eighth-inning RBI single by freshman Cal Chance.
Maine fell 7-4 to Boston College, though JuJu Stevens stayed hot with his third consecutive multi-hit game.

This Week’s Matchups in America East Baseball: