Worcester, Mass. (April 19) -- The Assumption College baseball team collected 21 hits in a 20-9 win over Pace University in Northeast-10 Southwest Divisional play on Friday afternoon.

Senior's Shane Keddy (Worcester, Mass. / Worcester Tech) and Travis Smith (Coventry, R.I. / Bishop Hendricken) each had a team-high five RBI in the win while freshman Tomas Paine (Upton, Mass. / Nipmuc) collected four hits. Keddy also had a 4-for-5 day and also scored four times for the Greyhounds.

The Greyhounds jumped ahead with an eight-run first inning as Assumption batted around in the frame. Keddy and Smith each went 2-for-2 in the inning as Keddy added two RBI and Smith drove in three runs. Senior Nick Napoli (Medford, Mass. / Boston College), freshman Michael Panza (West Haven, Conn. / Notre Dame) each had run-scoring singles in the inning.

The Setters battled back in the second inning by scoring five while capitalizing on three Greyhound errors in the frame. Pace scored five unearned runs in the inning, but forced starter Zack LaRosa (West Hartford, Conn. / Conard) out of the game after just 1.1 innings of work.

The Greyhounds extended the lead back to four on an RBI single by Paine in the bottom of the second before Pace chipped away with a single run in the third and fourth innings to draw within two, 9-7.

Assumption responded with a five-run sixth inning as Napoli had an RBI single and Panza contributed a run-scoring double down the left field line to push the lead back to four. Keddy broke the game open with a two-run triple to right center before coming around to score on a wild pitch. When the inning ended, the Greyhounds held a 14-7 lead after six innings.

After Pace cut into the lead with two runs in the top of the seventh, Assumption put away any comeback chance with six runs in the bottom of the frame. The first three batters of the inning reached as Billy Johnson (Auburn, Mass. / Holy Name) and Greg O'Donnell (Northbridge, Mass. / Northbridge) got the inning started with back-to-back walks. Graduate student Ben Benigno (Trumbull, Conn. / Trumbull) then loaded the bases with a bunt single down the third base line.

Paine got the scoring started with an RBI single, his second of the game, before Panza was hit by a pitch with one out to drive in his third run of the game. With two outs, Keddy was hit by a pitch to push across the third Greyhound run of the inning. After Paine scored on a wild pitch, Smith had a two-run double to end the Assumption scoring in the inning.

Paine went 4-for-5 in the win, raising his batting average 56 points to .306 on the season. He drove in two runs while scoring three times in the game. Smith went 3-for-6 and O'Donnell was 3-for-5 while Benigno, Napoli, and Panza each collected two-hits for the Greyhounds.

Benigno, Paine, and Panza each scored three times for Assumption while Johnson, O'Donnell, and Napoli each came across to score twice.

Junior Cody Rocha (Fall River, Mass. / BMC Durfee) worked a gutsy 5.1 innings out of the bullpen to earn his fourth win of the season. The lefty struck out six batters in his outing in relief of LaRosa. Senior Matt Metcalf (Warwick, R.I. / Bishop Hendricken) and freshman Anthony Perry (Salem, Mass. / Saint John's) combined to work the final 2.1 innings of no-hit ball to seal the win for Assumption.

The Greyhounds improve to 12-22 overall and hold a 7-3 record in Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Divisional play, while Pace falls to 24-10 and 9-1 in divisional play. The Greyhounds are in second place in the division, trailing Pace by 1.5 games.

Assumption will be back in action on Sunday, April 21st to finish the three-game series against the Setters. The first game of a doubleheader on Sunday will begin at 12 p.m. at Rocheleau Field in Worcester, Mass.

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