Boston College 12, North Dakota State 2: Eagles Pound Bison Behind Eight Run Second

Boston College scored eight runs in the second inning and never looked back, destroying the North Dakota State Bison 12-2 in the second game of the Snowbird Classic on Saturday. The Eagles improved to 3-6 on the year while dropping the Bison to 1-7.

The Eagles didn't waste any time getting to starting pitcher Trent Keefer (0-1), threatening in the first inning with a couple of hits before exploding in the second. Michael Strem led off the inning with a double and advanced to third when Logan Hoggarth flew out to center. He would score on a passed ball while Steve Sauter was at the plate; Sauter later walked to put a runner back on.

Sauter advanced to third when freshman Donovan Casey doubled down the right field line for his first hit, and he scored when Johnny Adams hit an infield single up the middle to second. Gabriel Hernandez loaded the bases for Blake Butera, who hit two of his three RBI with a single to left. Adams and Casey scored, opening up a 4-0 lead. Joe Cronin then doubled to left as well to score Hernandez for a 5-0 lead. Shaw finished off Keefer's day with another two-RBI double, drilling one to right center to score Cronin and Butera.

It didn't end there. Relief pitcher Kevin Folman came in for Keefer and surrendered a run when Shaw advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a ground ball. The inning ended with the Eagles batting around, but Hoggarth grounded out to third to end the threat. In all, BC achieved eight runs on seven hits with no Bison errors, and, for the first time all season, they managed a big inning without any runners left on base.

The game was effectively over at that point as starting pitcher Jesse Adams (1-0) went to work. The lefty threw five innings of shutout baseball, scattering four hits and striking out eight. He faced just four over the minimum before yielding to the bullpen.

When he departed in the fifth, Adams had been staked to a 12-0 run as BC scored two more in the third and fourth apiece. Hernandez picked up an RBI single and Butera grounded in a run at third in the third inning, and Casey again struck for a two RBI single to right center in the fourth.

The Bison returned the favor late in the game, notching two runs on a hit in the seventh. BC pulled the majority of their starters and brought in freshman Kevin Connor at the bump. North Dakota State loaded the bases with a single and two walks, bringing home two runs on another walk and a hit batsman. Connor lasted just one-third of an inning before Mike Gambino brought in Eric Stone, who got out of the inning.

Geoffrey Murphy pitched the ninth to retire the Bison.

All in all, BC had themselves their biggest day of the young at the dish. All nine starters got into the hit column with six having multiple hit days. Casey led the way with a monster 5-for-5 day, and, from the rest of the order from the top down, Hernandez had two hits, Butera had two, Cronin had three (on a 3-for-3 day), Shaw had two, Strem had one, Hoggarth had one, Sauter had one, and Adams had two.

Butera ended up 2-for-4 with three RBI, while Shaw recorded two RBI of his own. Casey had two RBI on his hits and also scored two runs. The Eagles struck out just five times in the game.

Boston College goes back to work with an early morning tilt against the Kansas Jayhawks on Sunday. Game time is scheduled for 10 AM.