Kiro Masters Mitchell In Opener As Eagles Earn Split

- Courtesy Mitchell Sports Information -

New London, Conn. - The Daniel Webster College baseball team split a doubleheader on Thursday afternoon against NECC foe Mitchell College. It was a tale of two drastically different games as the Eagles took the opener, 1-0. The Mariners took the nightcap, a 12-8 slugfest.

Rookie right-hander Kory Kiro (Goffstown, NH) was dominant in the opener, spinning a complete game shutout. Kiro (3-3) allowed just four hits while striking out eight.

Mitchell starter Andrew Langlais (Ledyard, CT) matched Kiro nearly pitch-for-pitch through the first five innings. But his only mistake proved costly as Eagles center fielder Rob Leary led off the sixth inning with a towering home run to straight away center field. The blast was Leary's first of the year, but he would add to that total in the nightcap.

Kiro would make the single run stand up as he cruised through the sixth and seventh to register his fourth complete game. The Eagles would manage only five hits in the opener including two off the bat of Leary. Kiro, Peter Plansky (Litchfield, N.H.), and Kenny Martin (Brockton, Mass.) also chipped in hits.

Both offenses would come to life early in game two, combining for eight runs in the first inning. Daniel Webster jumped out to a 2-0 first inning lead thanks to Leary's second homer of the day, a two-run opposite field shot off of Mariner's starter Adam Deltgen. Mitchell would answer quickly posting six runs on six hits off of Leary in their half of the first.

Daniel Webster fought back to cut the deficit to 7-4 after three complete innings, before the Mariners tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Leary's third homerun of the day cut the Mariner's lead to 11-8 after five and half, but it would not be enough. Leary finished the second game 3-4, with two homers, and five RBI. Joe Tamulonis chipped in a 2-for-3 effort in the loss. Deltgen went the distance on the mound for Mitchell, allowing eight runs on eight hits while collecting nine strikeouts.

With the split, Daniel Webster moves to 5-22 overall and 4-4 in the NECC. Mitchell goes to 8-18 on the year and 3-5 in NECC play. The Mariners will play host to Newbury College on Saturday, while the Eagles will close out the NECC regular season schedule at home against Elms College. Both doubleheaders are slated to begin at 12:00pm.