Box Score Box score

Northeastern gained an early lead and refused to relinquish it to UMass in a 8-5 win in Brockton, Mass. The win sends NU to its second straight Beanpot championship game, where Boston College, a 10-9 winner over Harvard, awaits. JT Ross shined on the mound, tossing six innings of three hit ball while allowing no earned runs. Brendan Stokes smashed his first home run of the year and Jon Leroux, Matt Miller and Frank Compagnone added RBI doubles.

Ryan Maguire roped two hits, driving one in and and scoring once. Miller, in addition to his double, hit a single and scored once.

UMass opened the game with two runs in the top of the first, logging two hits off of Ross. Those runs were unearned, and represented the only time that UMass led the entire game.

The Huskies used three hits and capitalized on two errors to score four times in the bottom of the first to take a 4-2 lead. Leroux's double down the right field line and Maguire's RBI single highlighted the offense in an inning that saw nine Huskies come to the plate.

NU added one run in the bottom of the second to push the lead to 5-2. David Gustafson drew a four-pitch walk and scored on Compagnone's double to right center. Compagnone, trying to stretch the play into a triple, was thrown out in a bang-bang play at third.

With a three run lead, Ross settled in, allowing just one hit over his final five innings of work. He struck out two and walked none.

The game remained 5-2 until the fifth inning, when Stokes launched a lead-off home run to deep left field. It was Stokes' first bomb of the year and his only hit of the game.

UMass finally got on the scoreboard again in the sixth inning, scoring an unearned run while the ball never left the infield. Northeastern, not to be outdone, matched the UMass run with one if its own.

NU played small ball, using a single, a walk and a sacrifice bunt to set up an RBI groundout from Tony DiCesare to make the score 7-3 after six.

Dylan Maki relieved Ross, and he was touched up for two unearned runs on one hit. NU went scoreless in the seventh, setting up a surprise move from the Huskies.

Andrew Leenhouts, who has started every game he has appeared in this season, came out of the bullpen to completely shut down the UMass offense. He earned a two-inning save, allowing just one hit while striking out four Minutemen.

NU tacked on an insurance run in the eighth on Miller's RBI double to left that scored Maguire, who reached by getting plunked.

Ross, Maki and Leenhouts combined to throw nine innings without allowing an earned run. The Huskies' defense committed four errors, all of which led to runs.

DiCesare and Logan Gillis were the only players to not score runs for NU.

Up next for the Huskies is a three-game set hosting CAA foe George Mason. First pitch on Friday at Friedman Diamond is scheduled for 12 p.m. noon. Check back on GoNU.com for more information, including a starting rotation.