How it Happened
Rhode Island split a pair of games at the USA Baseball-Irish Classic Saturday, beating Monmouth 5-4 in 13 innings before falling to Notre Dame, 8-4.

In the opener, Jordan Powell drove in Matt O'Neil in the bottom of the 13th to give Rhode Island (5-5) the walk-off victory over Monmouth.  Leading 2-1, the Rams extended their lead with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Jesse Lee drove in Greg Cavaliere in the fifth, and O'Neil hit a solo home run in the sixth to put Rhode Island up, 4-1.

Monmouth (1-7) strung together four hits in the top of the seventh. All three runs scored before any outs were recorded, with the tying run coming across on a passed ball. With runners on the corners and no outs, O'Neil fielded a grounder and threw out the lead runner at the plate. The next batter hit into a 4-6-3 double play to end the rally. 

Both teams were held scoreless over the next five-plus innings until Rhode Island broke through with Powell's game-winning hit in the bottom of the thirteenth. The victory was Rhody's third in a row. 

In the second game, Notre Dame (2-8) built a 6-0 lead over the first five innings. Rhody scored four runs in the in the top of the sixth to cut the deficit to 6-4. The Rams got five consecutive hits to open the inning, as Laurence Hill, Cavaliere and Powell hit back-to-back-to-back singles to get the rally started. Chris Hess singled to drive in Hill and Cavaliere, and Martin Figueroa followed with a two-run double. However, Figueroa was thrown out at the plate on a fielder's choice grounder. Rhody did not get any more runs the rest of the way.   

Inside the Box Score

• Junior Jordan Powell led the Rhody offense with six hits on the day. He was 4-for-6 with one run batted in against Monmouth and 2-for-4 with a run scored against Notre Dame. He also stole one base in the opener.
• Redshirt senior Matt O'Neil was 3-for-6 with a home run, two singles and three runs scored against Monmouth.
• Redshirt senior Mike Corin was 3-for-5 with a double and one walk.
• Against Monmouth, redshirt senior Jesse Lee singled and drove in one run, while senior Martin Figueroa singled and scored once. Both players stole one base.
• Figueroa added a double and two RBI against Notre Dame.
• Laurence Hill doubled, singled, walked and scored once against Notre Dame.
• Freshman Greg Cavaliere singled once, walked twice, scored two runs and stole a pair of bases on the day. 
• Rhode Island had five stolen bases on the day. The Rams now have swiped 15 bags through 10 games.
• Freshman Kyle Beaulieu made his first career start in the Monmouth game, getting the nod behind the plate.

What's Next
Rhode Island closes out the weekend with a game against William & Mary Sunday at 11:45 a.m.