Baseball Takes Down Worcester in Midweek Contest, 9-2

THE BASICS

Salem State, 9 at Worcester State, 2

Records: 

Salem State Vikings (8-10, 4-4 MASCAC)

Worcester State Lancers (10-10, 8-2 MASCAC)

Location: Worcester, Mass. - Rockwood Park

Date: Wednesday, April 8, 2026

THE LEAD: Thanks to three RBIs from both Owen Duggan (Billerica, Mass.) and Jack Doyle (Salem, Mass.), the Salem State baseball team came away with a 9-2 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) win on Wednesday afternoon. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Salem struck first in the opening frame when Duggan and Antonio Belgrove (Stamford, Conn.) knocked in back-to-back RBIs for an early 2-0 advantage. For the next four innings, Vikings starter Matt Walling (Plantsville, Conn.) kept the Worcester State offense in check with a stretch of scoreless baseball in the first four innings, which featured four strikeouts. 
• After the Vikes tacked on another run in the fourth, the hosts chipped away at the deficit thanks to a two-run fifth with RBIs from Riggs Catlin and Tyler Normandie that made it a 3-2 game. After a scoreless sixth from both sides, the Blue and Orange started to pull away courtesy of a five-run seventh that pushed its lead to six (8-2). Duggan and Doyle highlighted the high-scoring inning with two-run RBI singles each. 
• The Vikings added another run in the eighth courtesy of yet another Doyle RBI that made it a 9-2 ball game with one more inning to play. Jackson Beehr (Walpole, Mass.) came in for relief after a lead-off single for Worcester State and proceeded then to retire the next three batters and secured the 9-2 win. 

 INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

• Duggan and Doyle's three RBIs tied season-highs for the Viking hitters. 
• Four different Salem batters finished the day with multiple hits, led by Duggan and Belgrove's three. Doyle and Ethan Stepputtis (Prospect, Conn.) were the other two who each finished with two apiece.
• Walling had his longest outing of the season after going 8.0 IP while allowing 10 hits, two runs, and tying his season-high in strikeouts with seven.
• Catlin and Normandie were the lone Lancers to record an RBI on Wednesday.
• Matt Direnzo took the loss after tossing six innings while allowing six hits, four runs, and striking out three.
• Salem held the advantage in hits, 13-10.
• The Vikings have now won their first two MASCAC three-game series of the season.

UP NEXT:

Salem kicks off a three-game series with Fitchburg State starting in Salem on Friday, April 10, at 4:00 p.m.