Box Score
BOSTON –
Michael Foster showcased his valuable versatility and starting pitcher
Dustin Hunt struck out eight through 6.1 innings as the Northeastern baseball team beat Villanova, 4-1, Sunday afternoon.
The Huskies (9-10) won two of three games at Villanova during the weekend.
Foster (2-for-4, RBI, SB) collected two hits, an RBI, and swiped his team-leading eighth steal while Hunt allowed just one earned run and finished one strikeout shy of his career-best mark. Foster also shut the door on the Wildcats by working a hitless ninth inning to record his third save of the season.
Hunt found himself in trouble early when the Wildcats (7-14) loaded the bases in the home half of the first inning after Kevin Jewitt, Max Beermann, and Connor Jones hit three consecutive singles with one out, but the NU freshman got out of the jam by inducing an inning-ending double play.
Northeastern put two runs on the board in the fourth inning when Foster got the rally started with a one-out double. Foster then stole third and
Jason Vosler (0-for-2, R, RBI) walked to put runners on the corners. Foster was thrown out at home when
Shane Allen (0-for-4, R) hit a ground ball to third, but
Pat Madigan (1-for-2, RBI) came through with a single to score Vosler and
Mike Piscopo (1-for-4, RBI) followed suit with an RBI single that scored Allen and gave the Huskies a 2-0 lead.
The Wildcats cut Northeastern's lead to 2-1 in the seventh inning when John Cialone hit a one-out double that ended Hunt's outing. Reliever
Brad Burcroff struck out the first batter he faced, but Luke Emling's two-out RBI single put Villanova on the board.
The Huskies added insurance runs in the eighth when
Connor Lyons (0-for-4, R) reached on an error by the Villanova second baseman and
Gabe Levanti (0-for-3, R) also reached on an error after he laid down a sac bunt. Foster smacked a single to right-center field, which allowed Lyons to score and give NU a 3-1 lead. Levanti reached third base on Foster's single and later scored on Vosler's sac fly to centerfield.
"That was a great team win today," said Northeastern assistant coach
Mike Glavine. "Lots of guys helped out on both offense and defense, and our pitching was outstanding. You need a lot of energy to win the last game of a three-game series, and we had great energy today."
The Huskies play back-to-back midweek games when they travel to crosstown rival Boston College on Tuesday, March 25, and then host UMass Lowell on Wednesday, March 26. First pitch against BC is at 3 p.m., and the home game against the River Hawks begins at 3:30 p.m.
Notables
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Dustin Hunt has won consecutive decisions.
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Michael Foster picked up his seventh multi-hit game of the season.
• Northeastern starting pitchers combined for a 2.63 ERA against Villanova.
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