March 28, 2008

Box Score

DAYTON, Ohio - Freshman Tom Coulombe (Lincoln, R.I.) went 2-for-2 with a double, an RBI and a run scored as the Rhode Island baseball team defeated Dayton, 4-1, Friday afternoon at TWC Stadium. Senior Brett Palanski (Nashua, N.H.) earned the win on the mound while classmate Jamie Degidio (Narragansett, R.I.) threw 2.2 innings of relief to take the save.

Coulombe got things started with a lead off single in the top of the third before stealing second and advancing to third on freshman Evan Laude's (Long Beach, N.Y.) fly out to right field. Senior Mike O'Malley (Nashua, N.H.) followed with a base hit to right that scored Coulombe and gave the Rams an early 1-0 lead.

Dayton's Marshall MacDonald retaliated with an RBI double to knot the score in the bottom of the inning but it was the only run the Flyers would get as Rhody scored what proved to be the game-winning run when freshman Robert Noe (Lynnfield, Mass.) crossed the plate on a seventh-inning error by Dayton's Scott Dunwoody.

The Rams went on to tally two more in the top of the ninth as Coulombe used a sac-fly to plate sophomore Oliver Palmer (North Kingstown, R.I.) and Laude followed with a single to right that scored senior Shaun Hagey (Ephrata, Pa.) for the 4-1 victory.

Palanski earned the win, giving up one run on seven hits with five strikeouts in six innings of work. Digidio came in to close out the game, allowing no hits and no runs for his second save of the season. Dayton's Lucas Farden was charged with the loss.

The Rams and Flyers return to TWC Stadium for a 1 p.m. game tomorrow afternoon.