LOWELL, Mass. -- Powered by strong pitching performances from its two all-conference right-handers, top-seeded Maine won twice on Friday at LeLacheur Park to stave off elimination from the America East Baseball Championship and force a deciding championship game.
The Black Bears, who fell to Binghamton earlier in the day, 10-2, in the completion of a suspended game, beat fourth-seeded Stony Brook, 3-1, and second-seeded Binghamton, 6-1, following the loss to force the tournament's first seventh game since 2005.
Mike Connolly allowed just one run on eight hits in a complete-game effort to earn the win against Stony Brook, while America East Pitcher of the Year Tommy Lawerence allowed just one run over five and one-third frames going on just one day's rest to beat Binghamton and earn his second win of the tournament.
Maine and Binghamton will decide the league title Saturday at LeLacheur at 3 p.m. The game will air live either on ESPN3 or AmericaEast.com. A final decision will be made Saturday.
Binghamton 10, Maine 2
After weather caused game four of the America East Baseball Championship to be suspended Thursday, Binghamton finished off a 10-2 win over Maine Friday afternoon to move on to the league championship round.
Jack Rogalla picked up the win to improve to 5-4 on the season. He allowed just two runs on six hits over seven innings while striking out five. Greg Ostner finished the game out with two scoreless innings of relief.
The game resumed in the bottom of the seventh with two outs and Zach Blanden, whh had two hits and drove in three, on second. Logan Fuller got David Shanz to tap a grounder back to him to end the inning.
Maine threatened with two outs in the eighth as Alex Calbrick singled and Eric White doubled. But, Ostner, who relieved Rogalla following the suspension, got Brian Doran to fly out to left.
Binghamton, which reached its fourth America East championship round and first since 2009, added two runs in the top of the eighth. Jake Thomas singled to left, followed by a Daniel Nevares double to left center. After Shaun McGraw bunted the tandem over, Thomas scored a wild pitch and Nevares scored on a single up the middle by Brian Ruby.
Ostner then closed it out in the ninth, getting Mike Connolly to line into a 4-3 double play to end it.
Maine 3, Stony Brook 1
Maine plated three runs in the top of the sixth and got its second stellar pitching performance of the tournament as the top-seed Black Bears eliminated fourth-seeded Stony Brook, 3-1, in the fifth game of the America East Baseball Championship Friday at LeLacheur Park.
Mike Fransosa had two hits and drove in two, while Mike Connolly held the Seawolves to one run on eight hits in a complete-game effort to earn the win, which put Maine in the America East Championship round for the third straight year and ninth time overall.
Both starting pitchers dazzled early as neither team had a hit in the first three innings.
The first threat of the game came in the fourth as Stony Brook put two runners on with two outs. Kevin Krause walked and Tanner Nivens singled for the first hit of the game, but Joshua Mason grounded into a fielder's choice to end the threat.
Stony Brook finally broke through first in its half of the fifth. Johnny Caputo led off the frame with an infield single and immediately stole second. After Anthony Italiano lined out to center, Caputo moved over to third on a Connolly balk and scored on a bloop single to right by Brett Tenuto.
Maine countered in its very next at bat, plating three in the top of the sixth. Colin Gay led off with a four-pitch walk and Sam Balzano chopped a ball over first base for a double to give the Black Bears their first threat of the day. After Troy Black fouled out to left on a running catch by Jack Parenty, Fransoso, the America East Player of the Year, drove a sharp ground ball through the right side that plated two and gave Maine a 2-1 lead.
The Black Bears would add another as Fransoso caught Stony Brook by surprise and took second when Maine didn't pay attention to him. He then stole third with one out and scored on a single by Eric White.
Stony Brook's next best chance came in the eighth inning. With one out, Cole Peragine and Krause had back-to-back singles, but Nivins and Mason followed with flyouts to right and center, respectively.
The Seawolves, who left eight runners on and hit into a twin killing, had one more good chance in their last bats. Caputo led off with a double but after an Italiano flyout, got thrown at third trying to move up on a ball in the dirt. Tenuto then singled, but Roehrig popped out to short to end it.
Connolly finished off the complete-game effort as he struck out three and walked three. Daniel Zamora struck out a career-high 13 while allowing three runs over eight innings in a losing effort for the Seawolves.
Maine 6, Binghamton 1
Maine scored five runs over the first three innings and got five and one-third gutsy innings from ace Tommy Lawrence to stave off elimination and beat Binghamton, 6-1, in the sixth game of the America East Baseball Championship Friday at LeLacheur Park.
A balanced Black Bear attack was responsible for the six runs as four players had multiple hits and five drove in runs. Lawrence, who was throwing just two days removed from firing a complete-game, two-hit shutout in Maine's tournament opener, and D.J. Voisine did the rest of the work on the mound as the pair allowed just one Bearcat run.
The Black Bears didn't waste any time getting on the board as they put up two in the first. Sam Balzano and Troy Black led off the inning with singles. Michael Fransoso grounded back to the pitcher, who attempted to go to third but threw the ball away, allowing Black to score. Eric White drove in Fransoso with a two-out single to make it 2-0 Black Bears after one.
Maine struck again with two in the second as Brian Doran led off with a double and scored a suicide squeeze by Balzano, who reached on the play. He came around to score on Troy Black's triple, one of three he had in the game, giving Maine a 4-0 lead after two.
Doran and White combined to add Maine's fifth run in the third as Doran drove a single to left, plating White to put Maine up 5-0 after three.
Binghamton had chances over the first five frames, but Lawrence, who set a Maine single-season program record with his 11th win of the year, worked out of jams, stranding nine Bearcats over that span. Their best chance came in the fifth as David Schanz and Jake Thomas singled and Shaun McGraw walked with two outs, but Lawrence got Brian Ruby to ground to third to end the threat.
The game was halted with one out in the bottom of the fifth and after a 36-minute delay Maine plated its sixth run on Scott Heath's double.
The Bearcats finally broke through in the top of the sixth as John Howell and Nick Pancerella reached base to start the inning. Zach Blanden drove home Howell and Binghamton's lone run with a single to left, which knocked Lawrence out of the game. But Voisine got out of further damage, inducing a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.
Voisine retired all 10 batters he faced to earn the save for Lawrence, who allowed just one earned run over five and one-third innings on one day's rest.