After frigid temperatures prevented the Binghamton baseball team from playing on Saturday, the Bearcats’ offense remained ice cold the following day as BU lost 5-2 and 3-2 in a doubleheader against Maine at Mahaney Diamond.
Play on Saturday was cancelled due to sub-30-degree temperatures, reducing the series to two games.
After posting a lackluster .216 team batting average last weekend against Hartford, the Bearcats (14-11, 5-6 America East) managed only a .214 team average in the two games against the Black Bears (17-14, 8-3 AE).
“We need balance up and down our lineup,” Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki said. “We can’t rely on just two or three guys. We have to do a better job of situational hitting as well. We had a couple of chances to drive in runs this weekend with runners on third base and less than two outs, and we didn’t get those guys in. So it’s not just hitting for a better average, but it also comes down to situational hitting.”
In Game 1, Binghamton got on the board first with RBI singles from sophomore left fielder Jake Thomas and sophomore center fielder Zach Blanden to give BU a run in each of the first two innings. The Bearcats took the 2-0 lead into the sixth before Maine struck with four straight singles and a walk with two outs to plate five runs off senior starter Jake Lambert (3-1). The right-hander had held the Black Bears scoreless on five hits with three strikeouts before conceding the lead.
Thomas finished the opener 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Blanden went 3-for-3 with an RBI. Junior right fielder Shaun McGraw also had a productive game, finishing 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Lambert took the loss after allowing five earned runs on 10 hits in 5.2 innings of work.
In the second game, BU got off to another early 2-0 lead, only to squander it after its offense went stale.
“I think we’re all disappointed that we didn’t come away with at least a split,” Sinicki said. “I thought we played well enough to stay in the game, but we didn’t play well enough to actually win. We didn’t play a complete game, which is really what we need to do in order to be successful.”
Blanden led off the game with a single and was driven in one out later when Thomas launched his second home run of the season. Over the next eight innings, however, BU was held scoreless and limited to just three hits. Maine took advantage, scoring three runs in the fourth inning. Two singles and two doubles, including the go-ahead two-out, two-run double, put the Black Bears up for good.
BU junior starter Jack Rogalla (2-2) put forth a quality start, surrendering three runs on seven hits over six innings. He struck out five while walking one.
Senior starter Jay Lynch, whose scheduled start was erased because of the shortened series, threw two scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
Thomas, who finished 2-4 with a homer and two RBI, continues to lead the league with his .519 on-base percentage. He also has a team-high 25 RBI.
BU now sits in fourth place in the America East standings.
The Bearcats are next scheduled to travel to Ithaca, N.Y., to face off against Cornell on Wednesday before a weekend series against conference rivals Albany.
“Mid-week games are always interesting,” Sinicki said. “We only played twice this past weekend so we’ve got to try and find a way to get a lot of our pitchers at least an inning of work. We might run six, seven or eight pitchers out there. They need to get touches, they need to get on the mound and compete a little bit so that we’re ready for conference games. Lineup-wise, we’ll play some guys who haven’t had a chance to play, and that’s what the mid-week games can sometimes be about.”
First pitch against the Big Red is scheduled for 4 p.m. at David F. Hoy Field.