Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Daniel Webster (20-13)	0	3	0	0	1	3	0	2	0	9	8	2
Becker (22-10)	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	3	2	7	8	6
@ New London, CT

Pitching
Win: Kory Kiro (6-1) - Daniel Webster
Loss: Errick Maddern (5-4) - Becker

Daniel Webster Batting
2B: Rich Lizotte
3B: none
HR: Korey LeLievre

Becker Batting
2B: none
3B: none
HR: Tom Natoli

full stats

Baseball Drops NECC Playoff Opener

Daniel Webster led 9-2 in the eighth inning but fought off a late-game rally from Becker to claim a 9-7 victory. The Hawks brought the tying run to the plate with two down in the ninth before Rich Lizotte (West Warwick, R.I./West Warwick) secured the final out in relief.

Eagles starter Kory Kiro (Goffstown, N.J./Goffstown) got off to a slow start but found his groove, throwing 7.2 innings and allowing five runs (three earned) on seven hits while striking out five. He improved to 6-1 on the season.

Daniel Webster struck first with three runs in the second inning. After loading the bases with only one out, the Eagles brought in runs with infield grounders by Josh Chasse (Haverhill, Mass./Haverhill) and Elliot Kilgore (Milford, N.H./Milford) and scored the third run off a wild pitch.

Becker cut the deficit to 3-2 in the fourth on a two-run homer by Tom Natoli (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern) that just stayed fair down the right field line. It was his first home run of the season.

Daniel Webster tacked on a run in the fifth on a RBI single up the middle by Lizotte that scored Bruce Brown (Lowell, Mass./Gr. Lowell Tech./NECC). The Eagles then added three more runs in the sixth inning highlighted by a two-run bomb to center by Korey LeLievre (Hudson, N.H./Alvirne), his sixth of the year.

LeLievre struck again in the eighth, picking up his third RBI of the contest with a single up the middle. Lizotte also plated a run in the frame with a ground-rule double to right-center to put the Eagles up 9-2.

The extra runs would be needed as Becker didn't go down without a fight. Natoli singled with the bases loaded to drive in two in the eighth, and Joe Corey (Billerica, Mass./Billerica) followed with a single down the left field line to bring in another.

Trailing 9-5 heading to the bottom of the ninth, Becker made it interesting by scoring runs on back-to-back infield grounders by Cody Ewest (Warrenton, Ga./Thomson) and Manny Sanchez (Porterville, Calif./Monache) to cut the deficit in half. Lizotte, who pitched the final 1.1 innings in relief, then got the next batter to ground out to short to end the game.

Errick Maddern (West Haven, Conn./West Haven) made the start for Becker and allowed seven runs (two earned) on five hits and struck out seven while walking six. His record fell to 5-4 on the season. The Hawks didn't help their own cause on defense by committing six errors. Daniel Webster also added pressure by being aggressive on the base paths, finishing with seven steals in the contest.