Spiders Defeat URI to Secure A-10 Tournament Berth

Saturday, May 21

Richmond, Va.

11 AM

University of Richmond

26-24, 11-13

Rhode Island

20-33, 14-10

Rhode Island

Richmond

Photo by: Keith Lucas

05/21/2022 | Baseball

Box Score

Atlantic 10 Tournament Bracket (PDF)

RICHMOND, Va. – The University of Richmond baseball team continued to stoke Friday's offensive flames to pick up a 14-2 victory Saturday over the University of Rhode Island at Pitt Field. The Spiders not only collected the Atlantic 10 Conference series victory over the Rams, but the win also secured the Spiders the seven seed in the A-10 Tournament next week in Davidson, N.C.

Richmond, as the seven seed, will take on VCU, the two seed, at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Wilson Field on the campus of Davidson College.

Rhode Island, locked into the A-10 Tournament heading into the series, moves to 20-33 on the season and 14-10 in league play. Richmond moves to 26-24 on the year and 11-13 in A-10 action.

Richmond got on the board first in the second inning when D.J. Pacheco (Danvers, Mass.) launched a two-run home run for his third of the season.

Fellow rookie Jake Elbeery (North Andover, Mass.) collected his fourth home run of the season in the third inning with a three-run shot to give Richmond a 5-0 lead. Chase Conklin (Mullica Hill, N.J.) picked up Jared Sprague-Lott (Philadelphia, Pa.) with an RBI base hit for the Spiders fourth run of the frame.

Richmond starter Brenden Argomaniz (Claremont, Calif.) retired the Rams in order twice in the first three innings, collecting four strikeouts. URI got their only two runs of the game in the fourth off of Argomaniz, who scattered two runs on two hits and three walks over five-plus innings of work.

Josh Willitts (Southampton, N.J.), making his second relief appearance of the series, held the Rams scoreless over the next five innings. Willitts only allowed two walks while striking out six batters.

After Alden Mathes (Broomall, Pa.) tripled down the right field line to lead off the fourth inning, Dominic Toso (Philadelphia, Pa.) put the lead back to four runs at 6-2 with a sacrifice.

With two on in the sixth, Mathes again put pressure on the Rams defense putting down a bunt that the URI catcher threw into left field to score one run. Toso then plated a second run on another sacrifice fly before Mathes scored on an URI wild pitch to give the Spiders a 10-2 lead.

Sprauge-Lott doubled and scored on Conklin's ground out to the URI pitcher to start the scoring in the seventh. Pacheco tallied his third RBI on his third hit of the day, picking up Zach Lass (Mechanicsville, Va.) after he reached on a base hit. Pacheco came home on Toso's RBI single before Christian Beal (Flossmoor, Ill.) scored on Elbeery's sacrifice fly to give Richmond the 14-2 lead.