Baseball Continues Home Swing with Four Against A-10 Foe La Salle

University of Massachusetts Baseball Game Notes
Game 26-29 Date // Time	Massachusetts (8-17, 0-4 Atlantic 10) vs. La Salle (16-11, 2-2 Atlantic 10) Saturday, April 17 // 12 p.m. (doubleheader) Sunday, April 18 // 12 p.m. (doubleheader)
Location	Amherst, Mass. (Earl Lorden Field) Please click here for protocols on fan attendance restrictions
Series History	Massachusetts leads, 30-19 Last meeting: Massachusetts 5, (at) La Salle 2 // April 28, 2019
Live Statistics	SIDEARM Stats
Streaming	Live stream unavailable
Twitter	@UMassBaseball \| @UMassAthletics \| @CoachReynolds25
Instagram	UMass Baseball \| UMass Athletics

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Setting the Scene
The University of Massachusetts baseball team gets set for an Atlantic 10 Conference series when they welcome the La Salle Explorers to Earl Lorden Field for four. A pair of doubleheaders are on the docket, with one on Saturday, April 17 (nine-inning game followed by a seven-inning game), and on Sunday, April 18 (seven followed by a nine), with the first pitch set for 12 p.m., each day.

As a result of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts moving to Phase IV, Step 1 of its Reopening Plan on Mar. 22, UMass Athletics is excited to announce that it has begun welcoming limited spectators to home events. In addition, UMass students and faculty/staff may begin attending games on a first come, first served basis. Please note: fans listed on the UMass player pass list will be given priority access to home events. Only student-athletes can request tickets. In addition, UMass students and faculty/staff will be allowed into the facilities on a first come, first served basis. Students and faculty/staff will be asked to show their green checkmark upon arrival in compliance with campus COVID testing protocols. Fans of visiting teams and the general public will not be admitted to UMass home events at this time. Please click here for complete details and protocols.

Recap in a Minute
UMass got back into the win column after defeating Merrimack, 9-8, on Wednesday, April 14 at Earl Lorden Field.

The Minutemen and Warriors exchanged runs in the opening three innings of the contest, before UMass tallied two in the fifth and five in the sixth to take the lead for good. Dylan Judd's two-run homer over the left-center field hedges aided the Maroon and White to a 6-5 lead, and RBI singles from Mike Gervasi and Kevin Skagerlind pushed the Minutemen ahead 8-5. A hard-hit grounder back to the mound by Steve Luttazi that ricocheted toward shortstop allowed Gervasi to score UMass' ninth run of the game.

Merrimack plated two more, though, in the seventh inning and got within 9-8 on a wild pitch during the eighth frame.

The final frame nearly saw the Warriors level the score at nine-all. Tucker Wittman, on the mound for the save, caught a Merrimack runner leaning on second base that led to a pickle in which the runner was tagged out, making the tying run now on first base. A Merrimack batter was hit by a pitch, which moved the tying run back to second, before Wittman recorded a strikeout to get the second out of the inning. A wild pitch from Wittman on the ensuing 2-2 offering moved the tying run to third, then the runner turned for home as Gervasi hustled to the backstop, corralled the ball and threw it to Wittman covering home plate for the tag on a bang-bang play, and ended the wild game with a UMass victory.

All-Time vs. La Salle
The Minutemen hold a 30-19 advantage over the Explorers all-time. UMass and La Salle first played against each other in 1998, and last met in the 2019 season. The Maroon and White recorded a 5-2 triumph at La Salle on April 28, 2019.

[Judd]-ging by the Long Ball
Sophomore Dylan Judd sits atop the leaderboard for the Minutemen in home runs, recording six so far this season. Judd collected his first two collegiate homers on back-to-back at bats during the 10-1 triumph at Towson on March 21. The game saw Judd tally four runs on three hits, one walk and five RBIs. His most recent home run came in the 9-8 victory against Merrimack where Judd had two runs on as many hits, one walk and three RBIs.

The Oceanside, New York, native clubbed three others, with one each at Holy Cross (March 31), UConn (April 3) and Saint Joseph's (April 9).

Meet the Minutemen
A solid mix of returners and newcomers compose the 2021 edition of the Minutemen, the 138th season of competition for the program. Twenty-two members of the team are back from the abbreviated 2020 campaign, while thirteen players are in their first season in Amherst, including seven freshmen and six transfers. A complete roster is available here.

Keeping it in the Family
The 2021 season marks the 55th straight campaign that Massachusetts baseball will have an alumnus of the Flagship campus as head coach. Fourth-year skipper Matt Reynolds is a double graduate (2005, '10G), and was preceded by fellow alumni Mike Stone '82 (1988-2017) and Dick Bergquist '57 (1967-87).

This is the second longest active streak across Division I baseball. Only BYU (62 consecutive seasons) has been led by an alum of its campus for a longer period.

Latest Schedule Updates
UMass' Tues., April 20 game vs. Sacred Heart has been postponed due to initiation of COVID-19 protocols at Sacred Heart. That would leave the Minutemen's next scheduled game on Fri., April 23, opening an Atlantic 10 weekend series at Rhode Island. Due to the ever-evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, game dates, times and opponents are subject to change. The best way to remain on top of schedule updates is via the official UMass baseball schedule page, as well as the team's social media accounts (@UMassBaseball).

Scoreboard

Baseball Continues Home Swing with Four Against A-10 Foe La Salle

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Players Mentioned

Mike Gervasi

Dylan Judd

Dylan Judd

Steve Luttazi

Kevin Skagerlind

Tucker Wittman

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics