The America East playoffs delivered a dramatic turnaround on Tuesday night as the UMBC Retrievers fought back from an early seven-run deficit to fall 11-6 to the Maine Black Bears in Vestal, New York.
A Playoff Battle at Vestal
Maine opened the game with a seven-run first inning, capitalizing on a timely hit from Shane Andrus and a clutch single from Troy Carpenter that put them ahead 7-0. UMBC answered in the bottom of the first, loading the bases and scoring three runs; Dylan Melton led off with a double, and contributions from Anthony Mascuilli and Danny Orr trimmed the margin to 7-3.
The Retrievers kept the pressure on, with Brady Fox delivering a scoreless second inning and Kyle Eddington being hit by a pitch before scoring on Jesiah Carpenter’s single. Melton’s next hit brought the score to 7-5, but Maine’s pitching staff settled in, and Brady LeJeune-DeAcutis surrendered just one run over 2.1 innings.
Maine extended its lead in the fourth with a two-run double from Shane Andrus, and the Black Bears pulled away further when Troy Carpenter launched a home run in the eighth. UMBC responded in the same frame when Derek Paris hit his second home run of the season, but the deficit proved too large to overcome.
Individual milestones punctuated the contest. Melton finished with three hits, tying him for eighth all-time in UMBC single-season history with 75 hits, while Mascuilli’s 45th walk of the year placed him fourth in the same category. Pierce Friedman earned the win with 6.2 innings of solid relief, while Bennett Speicher tossed 1.2 scoreless frames for the Retrievers.
Despite the loss, UMBC closes the season at 29-24, a record that reflects a competitive campaign. Maine will now advance to the championship series to meet Binghamton, hoping to capture the conference title.