WATERVILLE, Maine. - Thomas baseball came up with two wins on Friday afternoon against the University of Maine at Presque Isle to improve to 4-2 in North Atlantic Conference games.
Game One: Thomas 6 UMPI 3
The Terriers jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning of game one. Tony Meza (Los Angeles, Calif.) got things started with a double that drove in Kyle Gleason (Danville, N.H.). Ryan Kappelmann (Auburn, Maine) added a sacrifice fly to score Meza followed by Devin Grindle (Surry, Maine) hitting a two run home run to cap the inning.
Thomas padded their lead with two runs in the fifth running off of a single to right field by Tommy Smith (Cumming, Ga.). The Owls were able to put three runs on the board in the top of the seventh but could not complete the comeback.
Gleason led the Terrier's offense with two hits and two RBIs while Tommy Smith and Grindle each had one hit and two RBIs. Dylan Copeland (Salisbury, Mass.) got the win for Thomas on the mound, he pitched a complete game allowing three runs on eight hits while striking out three.
Game Two: Thomas 6 UMPI 5
The Terriers went down five runs to start the second game but clawed their way back starting with five runs in the fourth inning. Grindle kicked things off with a single to score Tommy Smith while Austin Stebbins (Farmingdale, Maine) and Jarrad Willette (Concord, N.H.) also contributed singles to tie things up.
Things stayed tied until the bottom of the seventh inning when DJ Cagnina (South Berwick, Maine) reached first base on an error, scoring Tommy Smith. Daniel May (Honolulu, Hawaii) came in the eighth inning to pitch and did not allow a single hit. Andrew Pruell (Warren, Maine) came in to close for Thomas, allowing just one hit and striking out one, to get his first save of the season.
Meza, Grindle and Willette all had two hits each in the come from behind win for the Terriers while Stebbins had a hit and two RBIs. Alex Avila (Auburn, Maine) picked up his first win of the season on the mound for the Terriers, pitching one inning, allowing no hits and striking out one.
UP NEXT: The Terriers will host UMPI again on Sunday in another twinbill that will start at 1 p.m.
