The Middlebury College baseball team finally played its home-opener as the Panthers defeated Plymouth State 8-2 on Forbes Field. Middlebury returns to action at Bates this weekend, while Plymouth State takes on UMass.-Dartmouth and Lyndon State on Saturday and Sunday.
Plymouth struck first as Josh Labossiere doubled to left and later scored on a single up the middle from Chip Hale in the first inning. Middlebury starter Steve Shortle struck out the final batter of the inning to get out of a jam, allowing just one run to score.
Middlebury answered in the bottom half as a pair of two out walks set up a single to center by Mark Shimrock, scoring Noah Walker. The Panthers added a run in the third on a RBI double from Shimrock, again plating Walker.
The Panthers then added three runs in the fourth to take a 5-1 lead. Alex Blair drove in Pete Bourdon with an infield single, while hits from Gabe Broughton and John Lanahan plated two more runs. Middlebury added two in the fifth and one in the seven to seal the 8-2 win.
Shortle picked up his first win of the season, allowing two runs and five hits over six innings, while striking out four. Joe Brayton took the loss for Plymouth, allowing five earned runs and eight hits through four innings of work.
Broughton and Shimrock each had two hits and two RBI for Middlebury, while Blair went 3-3 with a pair driven in. Labossiere had a 2-4 day for Plymouth, while Hale went 2-3.
