NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. – Playing in the College's first intercollegiate sporting events in 367 days, the Saint Anselm College baseball team won both games of Saturday's doubleheader against American International College.

The Hawks picked up a 4-2 victory in the seven-inning opener before walking off the Yellow Jackets in dramatic fashion in eight innings. Down 7-4 with one out left in the seventh inning of game two, the Hawks tied things up and used a walk-off home run by junior Dan Baker (Reading, Mass.) in the bottom of the eighth to win by an 8-7 margin.

Saint Anselm improves to 2-0 on the young season while the Yellow Jackets, who opened their campaign against Pace during the week, fall to 0-3. Despite Saturday's games being played as non-league fixtures, the Hawks were able to sweep a doubleheader against a single Northeast-10 Conference opponent for the first time since Apr. 25, 2015.

As a team, the Hawks hit four home runs in the second game. For Baker, he posted the first home run of his career earlier in the game as part of a two home run game and, collectively, the home run barrage was the most in a single game for Saint Anselm since swatting four against Merrimack on Apr. 11, 2017.

Saint Anselm will once again take on American International on Sunday, Mar. 14 at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. in seven-inning contests.

GAME ONE – Saint Anselm 4, American Int'l 2 (Box Score)

Five of the game's six total runs were scored in the first inning as the Yellow Jackets got on the board with two in the top of the first. The first run came on a passed ball with the second American International run crossing the plate on a wild pitch.

The Hawks rallied to take a 3-2 lead, however, in their first at-bats of the 2021 season. Back-to-back walks by sophomore Brady Doran (Stony Brook, N.Y.) and freshman Zack Clough (Newbury, Mass.) put runners on base for junior Mike Pierro (North Andover, Mass.). Looking to do damage, Pierro pulled a ball down the left field line that found its way between the legs of the Yellow Jackets third baseman to drive in the first run.

The second Hawks run came on a balk and the go-ahead blow came off the bat of senior Salvatore Pezzolla (East Greenbush, N.Y.), whose double to center field almost left the ballpark. With the ball rattling around in deep right-center field, Pierro scampered home with his team's third run and pushed the Hawks ahead, 3-2.

Saint Anselm added insurance in the bottom of the third as Clough walked, advanced to second on a failed pickoff attempt, and later scored on another failed pickoff attempt.

Ahead by a 4-2 margin at that point, senior Will Conaton (Windham, N.H.) settled into the game and conceded just six hits while striking out eight batters. He did not allow an earned run, allowing just two unearned runs. Junior Taylor French (Goffstown, N.H.) came on to pitch the top of the eighth inning, earning the save after yielding just one hit and one walk.

Graduate student Matt Krause led AIC in the opener with two hits in three at-bats, drawing a walk, while senior Joe Kemlage posted the loss despite fanning seven Hawks batters and giving up just two earned runs. Right-hander Ethan Teixeira was impressive in relief, striking out five batters across two innings.

GAME TWO – Saint Anselm 8, American Int'l 7 (8 inn.) (Box Score)

Fast forwarding to the bottom of the seventh inning, Saint Anselm found themselves down by a 7-4 margin with two outs. With Doran on base after a pop-up off his bat was not caught, he advanced to second on a balk.

Senior Ben Horsfall (Westborough, Mass.) drove home Doran with two outs on a sharp single to center field. Junior Kyle Maurice (Exeter, N.H.), a transfer from UMass Lowell, followed with an infield hit to shortstop, which was followed by an error as the throw to first skipped out of play after eluding the grasp of the first baseman.

With Horsfall and Maurice on base, Pezzolla came through in the clutch with a single to right field that scored both baserunners. When all was said and done, the Hawks posted four hits and took advantage of two American International miscues to dramatically tie the game with two outs.

Freshman Matthew Michel (Haverhill, Mass.), making his collegiate debut in the top of the seventh, allowed just one hit in the top of the eighth. Heading to the bottom of the eighth, it took just one batter to end the game as Baker delivered a walk-off blast into the left-field bullpen to help the Hawks to victory.

The Yellow Jackets jumped ahead by a 2-0 score for the second consecutive game, but were unable to hold the lead. Saint Anselm scored a run in the bottom of the third inning on a solo blast by sophomore Mike Borrelli (Salisbury, Mass.) to lead off the inning. Maurice added an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth, drawing the game even at two.

Back-to-back home runs by Baker and junior Chris Schworer (Medfield, Mass.) in the bottom of the fifth inning doubled up the Yellow Jackets, 4-2. The Hawks added another booming base hit, this one a double off the bat of Clough, but the Hawks were unable to drive him in after he stole third base with two outs.

American International cut the deficit to 4-3 in the top of the sixth inning, scoring on a wild pitch. The Yellow Jackets seemed destined for their first win of the 2021 season in the top of the seventh, using an infield RBI single and a two-RBI single to create a 6-4 lead with one out.

The damage got worse shortly thereafter, as a foul pop was caught by Saint Anselm to create the inning's second out, but the runner from third scampered home without a Hawks defender covering home plate. In total, the inning saw four hits that ultimately produced four runs, flipping a 4-3 Saint Anselm lead to a 7-4 Hawks deficit.

Senior Ryan Schworer (Medfield, Mass.) struck out eight in his first start of the season, allowing just three hits but handing out seven walks. Freshman Harry MacKinlay (Norwell, Mass.) made his collegiate debut and allowed four earned runs to cross the plate. Michel earned the victory for Saint Anselm, relieving MacKinlay and pitching one-and-two-thirds innings.

Cam DeFeo led the Yellow Jackets with two hits and a team-best three walks. Freshman Brett Patnode, a native of Weare, N.H. and a graduate of John Stark Regional, pitched a scoreless inning of relief.