The New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference

BABSON PARK, Mass. - MIT scored five runs in the third and first-year Ryen Barry (Phoenix, Ariz.) pitched seven strong innings as the third-seeded Engineers defeated sixth-seeded Clark University, 9-4, in the 2008 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Baseball Tournament at Babson's Govoni Field on Saturday morning.

With the win, MIT improved to 17-14 overall and will face second-seeded Wheaton College at 4 p.m. later this afternoon. Clark was ousted from the tourney with the loss, which dropped the Cougars record to 11-22.

Clark jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first, as first-year Scott Hollingsworth (Tilton, N.H.) doubled with one out, senior Joseph Silva (Westbury, N.Y.) followed with a single up the middle, and sophomore Ronald Bathrick (North Haven, Conn.) cleared the bases with a two-run double to center. However, Barry would settle down after that, giving up just one run over the next six frames.

MIT took the lead with a five-run third, beginning with back-to-back one-out singles by sophomore Ben Bersanti (Butte, Mont.) and first-year Brian Doyle (Hopkinton, Mass.). Two batters later, senior Kevin Wheeler (Tucson, Ariz.) doubled down the left field line to drive in one run, and junior Thomas Phillips (Durham, N.C.) followed with a two-run double to left to give the Engineers a 3-2 advantage. First-year William Blackman (Calabasas, Calif.) then knocked in Phillips with MIT's third straight two-bagger, and junior David Nole (Torrington, Conn.) capped off the five-run outburst with an RBI single up the middle. The Engineers would tack on three more in the bottom of the sixth, highlighted by a two-run single to center by Doyle, as they coasted to the 9-4 victory.

Barry allowed three runs on nine hits, walked two and struck out two as he improved to 5-0 on the year. Junior Steven Nunez (Tulare, Calif.) pitched the final two innings for MIT, giving up one run on three hits. Sophomore starter Jonathan Merritt (East Bridgewater, Mass.) took the loss for Clark, evening his season record at 3-3.

Hollingsworth and Silva both went 3-for-5 for Clark, while senior Matthew Adams (Jackson Heights, N.Y.) added two hits for the Cougars. Doyle, Blackman, and sophomore Stewart Park (Brooklyn, N.Y.) each recorded two hits for MIT.

MIT 9, Clark University 4 (Apr 26, 2008 at Babson Park, MA)
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Clark University.... 200 000 101 - 4 12 2 (11-22)
MIT..................... 005 003 01X - 9 11 1 (17-14)
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Pitchers: Clark University - Jonathan Merritt; David Gagnon(6). MIT - Ryne Barry; Steven Nunez(8).
Win-Ryne Barry(5-0) Loss-Jonathan Merritt(3-3) T-2:13 A-150
Merritt faced 3 batters in the 6th.

MIT Eliminates Clark, 9-4, In NEWMAC Baseball Tournament