FAIRFAX, Va.- The Keystone College baseball team earned a pair of victories Sunday afternoon at Patriots Park North, defeating Westfield State, 7–4, and Eastern Connecticut State, 20-8.
Game One: Keystone 7, Westfield State 4
Keystone struck early and often, seizing momentum in the first inning with a pair of timely knocks. Benny Hess (Reading, Ohio/Reading Community) got things started with an RBI single that brought in Cooper Fesh (Bethel, Conn./Bethel), and Dante Ruby (Archbald, Pa./Valley View) followed with a two-run double that extended the early lead.
In the second inning, Keystone continued to build its advantage. Fesh drove in Dillon Bird with a single, and Emilio Portes (Miami, Fla./Monsignor Pace) added an RBI double of his own to give the Giants a four-run cushion.
The Owls chipped away again in the second, but a productive third saw Ruby score on a wild pitch to push the margin back out.
Keystone added another run in the fourth when Ruby recorded an RBI single, and although Westfield State got on the board with a sacrifice fly in the fifth, the Giants weren't finished.
An eighth-inning RBI single from Hess brought in Dee Rice (Spartanburg, S.C./Dorman) and put Keystone ahead 7–3. Westfield's power showed late as Sam Palmer blasted a solo home run in the ninth, but it wasn't enough to spark a comeback.
Cooper Ryan (State College, Pa./State College Area) picked up the win on the mound, scattering just one run over 3.2 innings of relief. The sophomore struck out five. Offensively, Ruby led the way with four hits and two RBI, while Hess contributed multiple knocks and two runs scored.
Keystone 20, Eastern Connecticut State 8
The Giants wasted no time getting on the board as Hess belted a grand slam to center field. Eastern Connecticut answered with two runs in the bottom of the first off, an RBI single and a balk.
In the third, Keystone broke the game open with a flurry of offense. A sacrifice fly by Portes brought home a run, and Bird followed with a two‑RBI single. The Giants kept adding on with runs coming off a defensive miscue and timely hits that turned the third into a decisive frame.
Eastern Connecticut mounted a counterpunch in the fourth, plating six runs highlighted by an Eric Mathewson home run and a Cameron Forte two‑run double that pulled the Warriors within one at 9–8.
The Giants' bats refused to be silenced. Keystone put the game away with a five‑run eighth inning, featuring an RBI hit‑by‑pitch, a bases‑loaded walk, and a two‑run single by Jaxson Monroney (Camden, Del./Caesar Rodney). Keystone ended the scoring in the ninth with a pair of RBIs from Ruby and an RBI single by Rice.
On the mound, Brandon Valles (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) earned the win, tossing two scoreless relief innings to help seal the victory.
What's Next
Keystone (4-2) opens their spring break trip on Thursday, Mar. 5 against Maritime College.
