After Boston College baseball failed to generate a run since the fifth inning, things looked bleak for the Eagles in their midweek game against UMass Lowell. Trailing 7–3, the circumstances threatened to sink the team below .500 on the season.
But in the eighth inning, it seemed as though a whole new BC squad had come to play. After a three-run bottom of the inning for BC, the game headed into the ninth inning with only one run separating the Eagles from the River Hawks, who had led from the very start.
But despite holding UMass Lowell (20–22, 9–8 America East) scoreless in the top of the ninth and giving themselves a chance to walk off with a win, a scoreless bottom of the ninth inning led to the Eagles (21–22, 8–16 Atlantic Coast) taking a 7–6 loss on Tuesday night.
“You’d rather always make a push and have a chance to look at it,” BC head coach Todd Interdonato said.
Eric Schroeder allowed just one hit and struck out two batters in the top of the ninth. But in the bottom of the inning, the spark that the Eagles’ offense had found in their eighth inning comeback ran dry.
A Barry Walsh walk was the closest thing to offense that BC could find. After Cameron Leary lined out to right field, Walsh was tagged out at second base, ending the game.
It was BC’s offense in the eighth, which started with a walk from Kyle Wolff, that put the Eagles in position to snag a win in the first place.
Following the walk, Nick Wang smacked a double into right field. Then, Vince Cimini slammed an RBI single through the right side that scored Wolff and sent Wang to third. A walk drawn by Beck Milner moved Cimini to second, and, all of a sudden, the bases were loaded for the Eagles for the second time that afternoon.
This time, BC capitalized.
Adam Magpoc reached on a fielder’s choice, scoring Wang. Then, Cimini stole home and Magpoc stole second a moment later, cutting the Riverhawks’ lead to one. Parker Landwehr flied out to left field and stranded Magpoc, however, forcing the Eagles to head into the ninth still trailing.
Trouble had started early for BC when starting pitcher Brian McMonagle allowed a two-run homer, a two-run double, two walks, and hit a batter with a pitch, putting the Eagles down 4–0 at the end of the first inning.
The Eagles sent eight pitchers to the mound over the course of the game, during which they allowed eight hits and five walks.
“We just needed to make a move after the first—just having that start puts you behind,” Interdonato said. “We just needed to keep the next run off the board.”
While the pitching in the second through ninth innings was not nearly as detrimental to the Eagles as McMonagle’s first inning had been, offensive struggles kept them out of the game.
The Eagles’ offensive slump almost ended in the fifth inning when Leary stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded after singles from Landwehr and Walsh and a walk from Sam McNulty.
“Every single at-bat, [Leary] hit hard,” Interdonato said. “It’s just good to see him hitting balls hard.”
Leary blistered the ball straight into center field, and it looked like a grand slam was on the way.
But Alex Luccini reached his hand up high and snagged Leary’s hit at the wall, saving his team from a potential one-run deficit.
“That kid made a really good play, which, that happens,” Interdonato said.
After Leary’s missed grand slam opportunity, the Eagles failed to score until the bottom of the eighth inning. The three-run frame was not enough, though, and BC sank to 21–22 on the season with the loss.
