Pitching hasn’t been Boston College baseball’s strength this season. Not even close.
But a strong collective pitching performance on Tuesday afternoon, headlined by Eric Schroeder’s three scoreless innings and punctuated by Joey Ryan’s save, is just what BC (14–17, 5–10 Atlantic Coast) needed to edge UMass Lowell (12–19, 4–5 America East) 3–1 in Chestnut Hill.
The win snapped a five-game skid for BC.
“I know in a perfect world you want to win 10–0 and just kind of roll with that,” BC head coach Todd Interdonato said. “But I actually think winning a close game and making plays and turning double plays, playing really clean defense, not making an error, I just think all those things get us more confident moving forward.”
While its pitching staff was what shined, the Eagles’ offense did just enough to grab the win with timely hitting and aggressive baserunning. BC also made some crucial moves defensively, turning three double plays to stifle UMass Lowell rallies.
The Eagle struck immediately in the first inning when Patrick Roche ripped a leadoff double down the left-center gap, then scored on Josiah Ragdale’s sharp single to right-center.
“It was a close game and low scoring, but the fact that we went double, single, single to start the game actually worked,” Interdonato said. “Basically, we have to epitomize what we’ve been talking about for the last 48 hours.”
Kyle Wolff’s sacrifice bunt later in the inning brought Ragsdale home for an early 2–0 advantage, capitalizing on River Hawks starting pitcher Nolan Geisler’s shaky start. Though Geisler settled in afterward, holding BC scoreless over the next five frames, the early runs proved decisive.
Schroeder worked efficiently despite traffic, stranding one runner in the opening inning and keeping the River Hawks scoreless through his time on the mound. His ability to mix a sharp slider with a well-located fastball kept hitters off balance. He recorded three strikeouts.
The bullpen took over from there, with JD Ogden delivering two scoreless innings and John Kwiatkowski working out of a seventh-inning threat after allowing back-to-back hits.
UMass Lowell finally broke through in the eighth inning. Ryan allowed back-to-back singles to open the inning, then a fielder’s choice allowed Rowan Masse to advance through home plate, cutting the deficit to 3–1. Ryan was able to record the final five outs after that, however.
Offensively, BC grabbed a seventh-inning insurance run.
After Ragsdale reached on a fielder’s choice and advanced to second on a balk, Adam Magpoc delivered a two-out RBI single through the left side, extending the lead to 3–0.
UMass Lowell’s offense, meanwhile, couldn’t capitalize on opportunities while going 9 of 33 at the plate.
Connor Kelly was a bright spot, but the River Hawks grounded into three double plays, including a crucial kill in the seventh that erased what could have been a big inning.
The Eagles’ ability to limit damage—UMass Lowell left five runners on base—was the difference in a game where the River Hawks gathered two more hits than the Eagles, but execution favored BC.
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