April 10, 2009

Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

KINGSTON, R.I. - Junior Oliver Palmer (North Kingstown, R.I.) went 5-for-8 with a pair of home runs as the Rhode Island baseball team took two games from La Salle, Friday afternoon at Bill Beck Field. The Rams first defeated the Explorers by a score of 9-5 before taking game two, 6-4.

Palmer finished the day with with three runs and three RBI while senior Dan Rhault (Lincoln, R.I.) and sophomore Tom Coulombe (Lincoln, R.I.) had four hits each. Rhault also batted in three runs on the afternoon as did sophomore Kenny Burns (Shelton, Conn.).

Senior closer Luke Demko (Gilford, N.H.) - who earned the save in both games - has now recorded nine so far this season. That number currently leads the Atlantic 10 and matches the top single-season mark at Rhode Island.

Redshirt junior Tim Boyce (Swansea, Mass.) got the win for Rhody in game one - striking out four batters and giving up three hits and three runs over seven innings. Sophomore reliever Ken Graveline (Prospect, Conn.) faced the minimum five batters over 1.2 innings of scoreless relief to pick up the win in game two.

Rhody got on the board first in the early game as Rhault capped a two-out rally by driving in sophomore Pete Mastors (Narragansett, R.I.) to give the Rams a 1-0 advantage.

La Salle, however, plated one in the fourth and one in the fifth to lead 2-1 after five innings of play.

Rhault led off the sixth with a single up the middle before sophomore Jeff Cammans (Jamestown, R.I.) and freshman Mike LeBel (Quincy, Mass.) loaded the bases on back-to-back walks with two away. Burns then sent a bases-clearing triple to left center to put Rhody on top, 4-2.

Palmer kept things rolling in the bottom of the seventh, leading off with a solo-shot over the left field fence. Junior Rob DeVeney (Marlton, N.J.) followed with a single through the right side to score Coulombe, who had reached on a double to left center. DeVeney then stole both second and third, setting up Cammans' RBI single up the middle.

The Explorers made it a 7-5 game in the top of the eighth but back-to-back home runs by Palmer and junior Zoey Angulo (Miami, Fla.) locked up the 9-5 victory for URI.

Rhody scored first again in game two as Palmer doubled down the left field line and then came around to score on a single to right by Rhault.

La Salle evened things at 1-1 in the top of the second but the Rams reclaimed the lead in the fourth when a double by LeBel plated both Coulombe and redshirt freshman Adam Derner (River Edge, N.J.).

Trailing 4-3 in the seventh, Palmer singled to right center to score freshman Milan Adams (Exeter, R.I.) before a perfectly executed bunt by Coulombe - Rhody's cleanup batter - sent Mastors across the plate to give URI a 5-4 edge.

The Rams tacked on one more in the bottom of the eighth when a two-out single by Rhault plated Adams, who had singled to right with one away.

The Rams and Explorers will return to Bill Beck Field for a 2 p.m. matchup on Saturday afternoon. The game was originally scheduled for a Noontime start, but was pushed back due to poor weather forecasts in the Kingston area.